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Bishop of Pittsburgh diocese wants to move pastoral center
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The Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh intends to put its pastoral center on the Boulevard of the Allies up for sale and move its offices to the campus of St. Paul Seminary on the west side of Pittsburgh near Crafton.
The Rev. Ron Lengwin, a diocese spokesman, confirmed Wednesday that the diocese is exploring the possibility but stressed that it has not yet put the building on the market.
"We're hoping to do that. Everything is not finalized yet."
Father Lengwin said Bishop David Zubik has long desired to move diocesan offices to the St. Paul campus, located on NoblesÂtown Road off the Parkway West. Bishop Zubik believes the campus is in a more central location and would give people easier access to the diocese, he said.
"It is the bishop's desire, and he has said it publicly many times that it would be more convenient for us to have our offices out on the St. Paul Seminary campus some time in the future," Father Lengwin said.
"All the I's aren't dotted, the T's aren't crossed. But is there a desire that someday we would be able to make it easier for people from all across the diocese to come in on the parkway, and have a building out there? That would be a few years away, I would think."
Father Lengwin said that neither the St. Mary of Mercy Church nor the rectory would be put up for sale at this time. Both are adjacent to the pastoral center and part of the Downtown complex.
The five-story pastoral center was built in 1957. It totals 56,000 square feet and houses many of the diocese's administrative offices.
Father Lengwin said the diocese has talked to a real estate agent about a possible sale. Bishop Zubik himself had mentioned the possibility during a quarterly meeting with priests and deacons on Monday.
Nonetheless, Father Lengwin said no final decision had been made to sell. "We have not determined that for sure. We're exploring the possibilities right now," he said.
First Published March 10, 2011 12:00 am
