Groundbreaking to celebrate construction of new church, destroyed by arson in 2019
FRANKLIN LAKES − Most Blessed Sacrament Church will begin to rise from the ashes Saturday when its members break ground on what is now expected to be an $18 million new sanctuary.
The 2,000-family congregation has been worshipping at the all-purpose room of its adjacent Academy of the Most Blessed Sacrament since the church was destroyed by arson in December 2019.
Donnelly Construction of Wayne was contracted to build the new structure, and estimates it will take 15 to 18 months to complete. Mayor Frank Bivona, a member of the church, chaired the building committee.
In an August letter to parishioners announcing the start of construction, the Rev. John Job cited three challenges faced by the congregation: insurance, COVID and escalating costs.
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"Settling an insurance claim for the complete loss of a multi-million dollar building is no small matter," Job said. " The negotiations have taken the better part of two years. The pandemic slowed the planning process for the new church significantly. The availability of building materials has diminished, increasing demand, even as fuel and transportation costs have risen sharply."
The church will receive $9.7 million from insurance toward the $18 million project, up from the original $16 million estimate. The church already had $2.4 million in its capital fund, and $1.6 million donated to the rebuilding fund.
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To make up the remaining $3.7 million "funding gap," Job said the church would launch a new capital fund campaign this fall. The congregation will also receive a $2 million line of credit from the Archdiocese of Newark to help with cash flow as the project proceeds, Job said.
"I am tremendously pleased by the design we have created, and by the opportunity we share to build a beautiful church that will serve the needs of our parish and community for many years to come," Job told his congregation.
The parish was founded in 1960, and its sanctuary built in 1981. Congregation members were surveyed following the fire for their desires on the new facility. The new building is "significantly larger," encompassing not only the sanctuary, but a chapel, education rooms and community gathering space.
The only part of the sanctuary to survive the fire was a brick tower holding three bells dating to 1875, cast at the Meneeley and Kimberly Foundry in Troy, N.Y. They were originally installed at St. Alphonsus Church in Manhattan, and moved to Most Blessed Sacrament in 1981 when that church was scheduled for demolition.
The bells were removed from the brick tower in July, since the tower was deemed structurally questionable and could not be incorporated into the the new plans. The bells were sent to Christoph Paccard Bell Foundry in Charleston, S.C., to be cleaned and updated with new electromagnetic strikers.
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Congregation member James Mayers, then 26, was arrested at the scene and charged with aggravated arson. In December 2020, he was found not guilty by reason of insanity and committed to Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital in Morris Plains. Attorney Lee Vartan could not be immediately reached to comment on Mayers' current location and status.
The groundbreaking is scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday on church grounds at 787 Franklin Lake Road at the intersection of High Mountain Road.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Franklin Lakes church destroyed by arson groundbreaking set
