New parish still years away

A proposal for a new parish in Saratoga County is moving forward after a year's delay awaiting approval by the Town of Malta.

Three years ago, the Albany Diocese submitted a basic plan to the Malta Town Board that included a new church and parking lot on 100 acres of a 250-acre site just off Route 67 near the Adirondack Northway.

In 2004, the Diocese submitted a request to the Town for rezoning of the acreage for a cemetery and the possible addition of a school or senior housing facility in the future.

Cemetery first

Plans to move forward were stalled when the Town imposed a year-long building moratorium. It was lifted in September. The Diocese then submitted its plan for approval with updated information.

Noel Olsen, diocesan director for Real Property, told The Evangelist that the updated information included plans for a new cemetery, which would begin as soon as possible.

"The cemetery would be constructed first because there is a need for that now," he explained. "It would provide between 40,000 and 50,000 burial sites," which could be used over the next 100-200 years.

Plans for the new cemetery call for use of about 50 acres of the proposed site.

Church coming

Revised plans call for the new church to be built after the cemetery. The parish would be named after Blessed John XXIII, the pope from 1958-1963 who summoned the Second Vatican Council. Pope John Paul II beatified him in 2000.

Plans for the new church envision that it would accommodate between 800 and 1,000 worshippers with a parking lot for 300 vehicles.

"The parking lot size is designated by the Town, taking into consideration the number of families that will worship there," Mr. Olsen said.

Growing need

In an article published in The Evangelist in 2002 (see www.evangelist.org), Bishop Howard J. Hubbard indicated that the need for another parish in the area is the result of population growth and overcrowding at nearby parishes, including Corpus Christi, Round Lake; St. Mary's, Ballston Spa; and St. Edward's, Clifton Park.

Since then, Corpus Christi has built a new church that accommodates additional worshippers at four weekend Masses.

"The basic plan we've submitted calls for the entire process to take place over an eight- to ten-year period," Mr. Olsen said. "The planned development district [set by the Town of Malta] requires us to declare, in advance, what we are going to build on that property, including specific description of what it would look like, size etc.

"Once that plan is approved, we then submit our specific site plans for approval by the Town Board and subsequent site plans as the building progresses. This is only the first hurdle."

(11/24/05) [[In-content Ad]]