Huntley church gets blessing to build addition
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Huntley’s village board has given St. Mary Catholic Church the blessing it needs to forge ahead with building a 32,567-square-foot addition.
But that’s not the end of the story.
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Parish outgrows Huntley church, seeks additionChurch officials now must present their plans to the Diocese of Rockford for final approval in late January, said Monsignor Steve Knox, the church’s pastor. The single-story addition the church hopes to build would include a 600-person parish hall, a small chapel, office space, a full kitchen and 10 rooms that could be split into 17 meeting rooms.
St. Mary, Huntley’s only Catholic church, has become too small for its parishioners after just 10 years. In 2001, the church served 1,200 households. Today, 5,000 households are listed on the rolls.
“The church is fine; we just don’t have any classroom space or a large hall for gatherings,” Knox said.
The addition, designed by Barrington-based Ruck Pate Architecture, is estimated to cost $7 million. So far, parishioners have pledged nearly $4.38 million, according to the church’s website.
Last week, the church made a slight concession to its original plan, with respect to parking spaces.
Church officials proposed being 163 spaces short than the required 532, but have since agreed to add 30, and drew the balance into their site plan.
“We have the right as a village board to demand that they complete those parking places at anytime in the future,” Trustee Harry Leopold said.
Construction likely will begin in the spring, pending approval from the diocese, Knox said.
