Cathedral of St. Raymond's restores 190-foot bell tower

It was evident something had to be done when a chunk of limestone as big as a brick was found on the grass below the 190-foot bell tower at the Cathedral of St. Raymond Nonnatus.

“We had an incident last April [2017], when a piece of stone fell off from 130 feet up,” said Elaine Gutierrez, director of development for the parish.

Gutierrez also is project liaison for cathedral repairs and improvements that include the bell tower work recognizable to passers-by because of the scaffolding rising along the sides of the structure from the ground to about 20 feet from its top.

These are big projects.

Renovations of the cathedral’s front facade included the removal of stone up to 6,000 pounds and the replacement of two pillars.

The facade project was recognized in May with one of the Joliet Historic Preservation Commission's annual restoration awards.

Gutierrez is hopeful the bell tower project will earn similar recognition.

“The bells have great meaning here,” Gutierrez said, noting they not only sound off the hours of the day but are used to express significant moments, such as the end of a funeral when they are rung to represent “the joy that the person has been resurrected.”

The bells rang for 20 minutes during a procession last month as seven new priests were ordained in the diocese.

The cathedral also is the principal church of the diocese, giving it standing beyond the Cathedral Area neighborhood that takes its name from the church.

The Cathedral of St. Raymond Nonnatus, commonly known as St. Ray’s, was built from 1952 to 1955, with the first Mass being celebrated there in 1954 before construction was completed.

It was built for the newly formed Diocese of Joliet, which was created in 1948.

The parish had developed an action plan for building maintenance and renovations, which included expansion of the parking lot and improved handicapped access, before the hunk of stone fell off the bell tower.

"Because of its height, it's never had any real maintenance," Gutierrez said of the tower. "It's hard to tuck point at
170 feet."

But it’s getting tuck pointed now. Because of water damage from the belfry, there has been some deterioration of stone that needs to be replaced.

“We understand at some point they’re going to be pulling off large stones that can weigh 100 to 500 pounds,” Gutierrez said.

Ward Contracting and Building Restoration has some experience in this type of work.

The Countryside-based contractor has been doing church projects since the 1970s, including the four-year restoration of Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago that was completed in 2012.

“Each job has it’s degree of difficulty, and St. Raymond’s certainly has that,” Brian Ward of Ward Contracting said.

The goals of the restoration and improvements at St. Ray’s have been more practical than cosmetic, Gutierrez said.

“We wanted to make it so people could have more access to our church,” she said. “And we wanted to make sure our church is safe and secure.”