Baldwin church plans new construction

LAKE COUNTY — The parish of St. Ann’s in Baldwin has announced plans to build a new church in the near future.

This exciting news has been greeted with enthusiasm by the community, particularly as the church structure presently in use has seriously deteriorated and is much in need of repair.

St. Ann’s pastor, Reverend Father Ron Snyder, reports that in 1964, it was determined that the church - built in the 1920’s - was no longer viable and should be replaced. A “temporary” building was erected and has served the St. Ann community ever since, (for almost 50 years). But in recent years, it has become obvious that structural damage has progressed to the extent that urgent action is needed — and soon.

Some of the problems include:

• cracks and crumbing in the stone foundation;

• rotting roof support system; weakened rafters which have dried out and pose a fire hazard;

• disintegrating shingles on both the old and newer parts of the church;

• insufficient insulation; obsolete heating and cooling systems resulting in high energy costs;

• substandard electrical wiring.

Another consideration which has motivated parish council-members to plan for a new church is the fact that the existing space is not sufficient for the needs of the congregation. The vestibule is quite small and tends to get very crowded after services; handicap access ought to be improved; a larger community meeting room would be an enormous benefit; the present kitchen and bathrooms are inadequate; the sacristy should be larger; and finally, the church furnishings — especially the pews — could use refurbishing.

A new church has been on St. Ann’s “wish list” for a long, long time — but over the years, other needs took priority. These included the parish house and offices, the Senior Center, the food pantry, and more.

Parish leaders noted that these choices were focused mainly on the major people needs of this community. But there is general agreement that the time has come to erect a new place of worship that will be a joy to Baldwin.

A great deal of planning and work remains to be done, but the project is under way at last.

A very striking architect’s rendition of the proposed new church is on display in the vestibule of St. Ann’s, along with photographic documentation of the structural damage in the existing building.