Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, began its 164th academic year with the knowledge that the plan which will guide the future use of its campus facilities has the approval of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod’s Board of Directors (BOD). Dr. John F. Johnson, president of Concordia Seminary, presented the revised master plan, which includes the addition of the adjacent Christian Brothers College High School (CBC) campus, during a May meeting of the BOD. Following Johnson’s presentation, the Board voted to approve the plan.
“We appreciate the confidence expressed by the Board through its approval of our revised campus master plan,” commented Johnson. “CBC had not expressed its desire to relocate when we adopted the original campus master plan. The opportunities presented by the future addition of this campus to our existing facilities made it imperative that we approach the Board again with a revised campus master plan.”
The process which produced the original campus master plan began in 1999 when Johnson appointed a campus master plan committee. The master plan committee selected Mackey Mitchell Associates, a nationally-recognized architectural and planning firm to develop the campus master plan. Mackey Mitchell Associates received input regarding campus needs and priorities from all portions of the Seminary community in designing the original master plan.
On January 29, the purchase of CBC by the Marvin M. Schwan Charitable Foundation was completed. The Schwan Foundation purchased the CBC campus in behalf of Concordia Seminary. CBC will move to a new campus it is constructing in western St. Louis County and will continue to occupy the current campus until its new campus is complete. At that time, the Schwan Foundation will offer the CBC campus for exclusive purchase and use by Concordia Seminary.
Overseeing the formation of a vision for the future use of the CBC campus facilities has been the Seminary’s vice president for institutional planning and research, Alan Meyer. The planning process for the utilization of the facilities on the South Campus (CBC) was formally initiated on June 27, 2002 with a focus group including representatives of the faculty, staff, local parishes, businesses and local government. Additional focus groups will be convened to solicit ideas. “There exists a high level of interest and enthusiasm for integrating this facility into the overall plans for the Seminary as it prepares pastors for the ministry,” commented Meyer.
On September 15, the Seminary celebrated the completion of the first element of its master plan, the renovation of its auditorium. Improvements to the renovated auditorium included seating, lighting, acoustics, and heating and air conditioning. The Clara and Spencer Werner Foundation of Paris, Ill., made the renovation possible through a gift to Concordia Seminary and also provided the funds to develop the Seminary’s campus master plan.
Elements of the campus master plan have been prioritized and organized into two main phases. While the entire master plan encompasses the next 15 years, phase 1 improvements are planned for implementation over the next eight years, and phase 2 items are scheduled for implementation in years 9-15. Additional major elements of the first phase include the renovation of the Seminary’s current dining facilities, classroom upgrades, additional on-campus married student housing, faculty and office improvements, rerouting of the campus road system and increased parking capacity.
Ed Dollase, vice president for administrative services at Concordia Seminary, noted that the entire master plan has been carefully structured so that it can be implemented in separate, component parts. When completed, however, the result will be a unified plan that makes the best possible use of campus facilities and resources, while maintaining their architectural beauty and grandeur.
For more information, contact Seminary Relations, Concordia Seminary, 801 DeMun Ave., St. Louis, MO 63105; 314-505-7371.