St. Cecilia Catholic Church

Our Solution

SVPA’s solution was to remove the middle section of the roof and open it up to a clerestory space with high windows down the central nave to allow an abundance of natural light and accentuate the verticality of the space. Other improvements included a total gut of the existing sanctuary, including new stone and wood wall panels, new ceilings and new porcelain tile flooring. Exterior windows were cut into the existing brick walls and a rose window was added to the east side of the clerestory to bring in additional natural light and to prepare the space for the addition of stained glass in the future.

SVPA replaced the original liturgical consultant for the parish. To beautify the space as well as bring a sense of sacredness to the space, new pews were added as well as all new liturgical furnishings, including a marble ambo, altar, altar of repose, baptismal font, wooden reredos, sanctuary railing, and devotional shrines. An addition was added to the west of the existing church to add a new sacristy, storage room, restroom and mechanical mezzanine space. The resultant transformational design of the interior created a much stronger presence from the exterior by lifting the central nave space to compete with the scale of their existing narthex. The new raised roof also includes a cupola centered over the altar.