| December 3, 2007 | Volume 83, Number 3 | |
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A good moveThe opening of the new Diocese of Richmond Pastoral Center on Dec. 5 will at last allow diocesan offices, councils and commissions to hold meetings and special in-service workshops and not have to worry about starting late because those participating in the event are circling around the building looking for a parking space. In fact, to invite people to come for such gatherings and not be able to provide adequate parking seems somewhat inhospitable. The new headquarters for the Diocese of Richmond, located at 7800 Carousel Lane in western Henrico County, will replace the old Diocesan Chancery building which is really a series of early 20th century rowhouses whose walls had been knocked out. Known by some as Chancery Row, the Chancery location across from the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart had a definite charm. But in recent years as neighboring Virginia Commonwealth University erected new buildings and the student population grew, the Chancery building became impractical for the day-to-day work of the diocese’s central administrative offices. Lack of adequate parking was only one problem. “We’ve simply outgrown the space,” said Anne Edwards, special assistant to Bishop Francis X. DiLorenzo. The new Pastoral Center will provide Chancery employees something they’ve never had before. All diocesan offices as well as the Diocesan Tribunal and The Catholic Virginian will be under one roof. Various offices, unless they wish to do otherwise, will be able to hold large meetings in the Pastoral Center and not have to carry items like projector screens, notebooks and other workshop items to their cars and then back to storage closets after the meeting. The Pastoral Center will serve as a resource for all parishes, Catholic schools and institutions of the diocese. Visitors to the building will find a parking lot with more than 200 spaces. The previous Chancery lot had parking for 38 cars which included some spaces for employees of our next door neighbor, Grace and Holy Trinity Episcopal Church. In fact, Chancery employees and visitors to the Cathedral were not supposed to park in the lot after 5 p.m. and on weekends when the parking area became the domain of the Episcopal parish. The Museum of Virginia Catholic History will have a new home at the Cathedral. Exhibits of various photographs and old memorabilia will be displayed in part in the glass cases along the Cathedral walls in the sanctuary and in the vestibule. Other items will be in rooms in the back of the sanctuary. Of course, the museum will continue to be open by appointment only but the new location in the Cathedral will hopefully prompt more to visit.
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