Delivery: General Contractor
Designer: SVPA
Sr. Project Manager: Jon Lewton
Superintendents: Andrew Rasmussen & Kevin McGlothlin
This summer, St. Cecilia Catholic Church in Ames is celebrating the completion of a comprehensive addition and renovation project. Construction spanned 10 months, from July 2024 through May 2025, and included an 800 sq. ft addition and significant renovations to more than 13,000 SF of the existing building.
This project included a dramatic clerestory addition through the existing roofline. The renovations focused on creating more natural light, with 24 new windows installed throughout the building – 8 on the lower level and 16 on the upper level (clerestory). The renovation also included upgraded finishes in the sanctuary and nave areas, with extensive tiling, limestone walls, stained glass, new pews, and a new baptismal font. The project also included a family restroom, centralized entryway, and dedicated confessional area. Additional storage rooms were also added, as well as HVAC and utility systems.
“The goal of the project was to address all the deferred maintenance issues and develop a brighter and more uplifting space where people felt like they were in a church,” said Jeff Witt, the Church’s representative for the project.
The project demanded a high level of finishes. The contemporary design of the building features few 90-degree angles and non-traditional layouts that required a high level of detail from the very beginning of the project.
Most critical to this project was maintaining the sacred nature of the worship space, and SVPA Architects’ liturgical expertise helped ensure all elements respected the Church’s requirements and expectations. Another important consideration in this project was coordination between the Church and the Story team, to ensure construction was not overly disruptive to the church’s services as they occupied an adjacent space during the whole course of construction.
Sequencing was another challenge faced in this project, since about 90% of the space required drywall ceilings with extensive preparation before any finishing could commence. Working within one large room created logistical hurdles for managing workspace and storage. The team overcame these challenges to create a meaningful new space for St. Cecilia parishioners.
The contractor, architect and owner need to work together as a team for a project to succeed. I feel that Jon, Andrew and Kevin worked well together and also worked well with the architect and St. Cecilia staff. We were all equal partners and worked out issues as they came up.
