RM9.6m plan to construct new Catholic Centre
Published on: Sunday, July 23, 2017
Kota Kinabalu: The Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu on Saturday launched its plan to construct a new RM9.6 million Catholic Centre to replace the old one.Speaking at the ceremony, head of the steering committee, Fr. Cosmas Lee, said all the necessary legal works have been approved and the ground-breaking ceremony is expected to be held before end of year.The new centre is necessary because the two buildings at the Catholic Diocesan Centre in Taman Hiburan have been declared unsafe after cracks were detected in several of the buildings' walls.
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The Catholic Diocesan Centre, built about 30 years ago, currently houses the Archbishop's office, the Archdiocese's archive, classrooms for aspirants and Catholic Sabah newsroom, among others.The new Catholic Centre will be built on a site adjacent to the Sacred Heart Cathedral. The site was previously used by Shan Tao Primary School which was relocated to Kapayan Ridge three years ago."The new centre will have two office blocks. One is a two-storey block that houses a conference room, archives and gallery, while the other is a three-storey structure for the Archbishop's office, a chapel, meeting rooms and the Catholic Sabah office."The second block will also have rooms for the nine Commissions of the Archdiocese, conference facilities for Diocesan meetings, seminars and training as well as audio-visual and other functions related to social communications," said Fr. Cosmas.
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The buildings are a fusion of new and old language with heavy use of coloured glass panes on the exterior, designed pro-bono by local architect firm ADK Architect Daniel Koh.Fundraising will be carried out in full gear once the permit is issued by the relevant authority.
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"We have 21 parishes under the Archdiocese and we will ask them to help with the fundraising. We also have a fundraising committee, headed by Willie Wong, who will approach individuals whom we have identified to be potential donors," he said.Meanwhile, in his address, Archbishop John Wong appealed to parishioners and Catholics in the Archdiocese to come forward and be a part of the project.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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