Frequently Asked Questions

What is included in the current construction project?
The current construction project includes our Church, Chapel, parking lots and walkways, site work and infrastructure enhancements to the site. The Parish Ministry Center, formerly Parish Offices, is contingent upon funding.

Further details are bulleted below:

• A 1,010 seat church with choir loft & elevator to the choir loft (mandatory for special needs people, plus
  functional use of transporting large equipment for the music ministries);

• Choir Loft with 80 seats;

• A 109-seat chapel (with room for additional movable seating) which could be used not only for daily Mass but for smaller weddings, funerals and other liturgical functions;

• An enhanced roof that is in keeping with missionary architecture, faithful to Bucks County tradition and much more durable in terms of expected life and warranty;

• Bell Tower

• A shrine devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe (with the additional capability as a suitable space for viewings, small music ensembles for special liturgies or concerts and room for additional movable seating during large Masses)

• A shrine devoted to St. Juan Diego

• Baptistery (between the chapel and the church, positioned as a “unifying bridge” or sacramental focal point.)

• Confessionals, restroom facilities, three Sacristies: one for vestment storage, one for robing and one for custodial needs with additional space for the Music Ministries, Ushers, Sexton and other parish ministry use;

• HVAC equipment rooms;

• Several storage areas;

• All site work including: berms and plantings, retention basins, sewer and water lines, tie-ins to Township, County and PennDot systems;

• A myriad of other details including: easements signed and filed with the aforementioned governmental bodies — required just to prepare the site for the major construction;

• Parking Lot and conveyances from Route 413 and Cold Spring Creamery Rd.;

• All necessary walkways

When will the Church be completed?
We are working with the contractor to ensure the most expeditious completion of the project. Realizing
that there are many variables such as weather outside of our direct control, the current estimate for completion if a three month window that runs from Christmas 2010 through the end of March 2011.

How much are we seeking to raise in the Campaign?
Our goal is to secure at least our Challenge Goal of $6 million and ultimately our Sacrificial Goal of $7
million necessary to complete the project as described above.

What is the total cost of the current construction project?
Including the Ministry Center, which is still just a concept, the total cost of the project is estimated to be
$18,141,204.

Will we ever build a parish school?
While one would not like to say never, it is not currently envisioned that Our Lady of Guadalupe will
have a parish school. However, we will need a Religious Education Center (REC) to support our PREP
Program and CYO sports program. This facility would include a number of classrooms, up to 28, a gymnasium, and other meeting spaces.

Does that mean there will be another campaign?
Yes, as was always planned, the construction of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish and its facilities in their
entirety was a three phase project with each phase requiring a capital campaign. However, if we oversubscribe our current effort sufficiently, we may not require the third campaign.

I thought the Rectory was the third phase of the project, why did we purchase the rectory now?
You are correct. As originally planned the Rectory was to be the third phase of the project. The
reason it was included in the first phase is multifold, most important to this next campaign is that it
saved the parish a minimum of $1.5 million.
There were other reasons beyond the financial savings as well.

These included:
 

• The previous townhouse was insufficient for the needs of a parish with two priests in residence as wellas the ability to maintain “hosts” on site.

• The market for townhouses was at a high thus would result in the greatest gain financially for the parish.

• The market for large single family homes was at a low resulting in the best purchase price being offered to the parish.

• The particular house purchased was designed in such a way so as to naturally lend itself to the growing needs of the parish.
   

Why isn’t the rectory located on the Parish grounds?
There are two primary reasons the rectory is not located on the Parish Grounds:

1. The cost to build a structure on the grounds would be dictated by Pennsylvania and Buckingham
   building codes. These would have driven the cost up to almost $2.5 million which was deemed by the Pastoral and Finance Councils in conjunction with parish clergy to be prohibitive at this time.
    

2. Based upon the needs of a parish with now two priests in residence, a chapel to house the
   Eucharist as well as the ability to house guests, the previous town home was deemed unsuitable
   as a rectory by both the Parish and the Archdiocese. While the current rectory is by no means meant to rule out the possibility of ultimately building a rectory on the parish grounds, it was the most timely way to meet the parish’s current needs. Beyond cost, the process to complete architectural design, apply and receive the necessary permitting and finally complete the actual construction, the parish was looking at a minimum of five to seven years.