CATHEDRAL OF DREAMS; Huddersfield's largest church opens on Sunday, it cost pounds 12.5m and seats up to 2,100

Huddersfield Daily Examiner (Huddersfield, England), Sept 17, 2008

Byline: By HENRYK ZIENTEK Business Reporter

A CATHEDRAL in glass and Yorkshire stone is nearing completion.

Members of Huddersfield Christian Fellowship (HCF) are close to concluding the biggest church-building project in Britain for more than 20 years with the construction of Cathedral House at St Thomas' Road, Folly Hall.

The new building - part of which opens with a celebration service on Sunday - replaces HCF's existing premises at Harvest House in St John's Road.

And everything about this pounds 12.5m project is on the grand scale. The new building includes an expansive auditorium with ground floor and balcony seating 2,100 people - almost double the 1,200 capacity of Huddersfield Town Hall.

The 6,700sq metre auditorium features a stage for up to 60musicians and singers, a sophisticated sound and lighting system, a high-tech projection system and a baptismal pool, which retracts into the front of the stage.

The auditorium will open to worshippers for the first time on Sunday when church members will march from Harvest House, through the town centre to Cathedral House where a mystery VIP will be on hand for a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Work on the rest of the building - a three-storey structure - is scheduled for completion in March next year - when public areas including the coffee shop, bookshop, children's play gym and outdoor play area will be completed.

There will also be teaching and seminar rooms, toilets, kitchens and large function rooms on the ground and first floor.

An airy reception area will include a water fountain and a metal "tree" supporting an impressive glass dome.

Outside, where there is parking for 250 cars, the building is identified by a slender blue panel fronting St Thomas' Road with the name Cathedral House picked out in stainless silver.

The work is being overseen by pastor Colin Cooper and project co-ordinator Andrew Kisumba while Andrew France, of architect practice Aedas in Huddersfield and a member of the church, is project director on site.

Mr France said: "When we acquired the site, it had been completely cleared and all the services - gas, electricity and water - had been ripped out. We had to build a dedicated electricity sub-station as well as dealing with some old Victorian sewers that hadn't appeared on any map."

The main contractor is Bradford- based Stainforth Construction, but many of the sub-contractors and suppliers are local.

"At its busiest, we have had up to 100 people working on site, including local joiners, plumbers, electricians and landscape gardeners," said Mr France.

"There has been 'full employment' on site for almost three years as each of three phases of development takes shape."

Mr Cooper said the move was being made to provide more space for the church's ever-expanding congregation and improved facilities for church groups as well as clubs open to the wider community.

HCF was launched in the mid-1980s with premises in Northumberland Street before moving to the former Comet showroom, which converted and renamed Harvest House, eight years ago.

Mr Cooper - for whom the opening of the new facilities provides a belated 60th birthday present - said: "I never expected we would need to move again before I retired! But we are continuing to grow and attracting new members all the time."

Kirklees planning officers suggested the former Brook Crompton engineering site as a potential new home and the land was acquired five years ago.

The project was slowed by the need to repair the Victorian sewers and assemble the site before the first foundations were dug a year ago.

Fundrai sing has cont i nued throughout the project - the church has members from 25 nations - with auctions and summer fairs contributing to the cause alongside a number of generous donations.

Mr Cooper said the new building aimed to bring benefits to church members and the wider community, adding: "It is a modern building for the 21st century," he said. "But it reflects what happens in the church."

And Mr Cooper said HCF had also stuck with tradition. The medieval cathedral builders always included a plaque - 'Built to the Glory of God'.

At Cathedral House, the entrance area in front of the auditorium has not one, but two such plaques of black granite with the phrase in gold lettering.

Comment - Page 6

Fellowship facts

HUDDERSFIELD Christian Fellowship aims to meet the spiritual and physical need for children, youths and adults irrespective of denomination.

Its members come from various backgrounds with at least 25 countries represented.

The group believes in the importance of forming, developing, maintaining and strengthening good, solid relationships with God and with one another.

Members help serve the local community in practical ways - such as decorating a local school, operating a burger van for late-night club-goers in Huddersfield and providing food parcels for needy families.

Regular events are held at the church for members to bring their family and friends - including an evening with comedians Bobby Ball and Sid Little, a murder-mystery evening and musical concerts.