The Rev. Charles Bober and the second-grade class at St. Kilian Catholic School gather at the site of the new church on the St. Killian campus in Cranberry Township. St. Kilian is preparing to break ground on a church, which is estimated to cost $10 million.

CRANBERRY TWP — As the 21st century opened, the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh faced a conundrum in Butler County.

The rapid growth of Cranberry Township and the surrounding communities was creating an influx of Catholic families.

To deal with this issue, Bishop Donald Wuerl in 2002 approved a change to the borders of two parishes. St. Ferdinand Parish, which used to take in the entire township, was altered to include only the portion of the township west of Route 19.

St. Kilian, which was based in Mars and served Adams Township, Callery and Valencia, had its border extended to include the eastern part of Cranberry, which added 1,200 families to the parish.

As a result of the shift and the continued growth in the area, St. Kilian soon outgrew its longtime church in Mars, which led to planning for a new, larger parish, said Chuck Goetz, the parish business manager.

St. Kilian is preparing to break ground on a new church estimated to cost $10 million.

The church will have a sanctuary to seat 1,200 people and will be on 33 acres bordering Franklin Road and Route 228. The construction will be phase two of the development of that property, already home to the parish center and the parish school completed in 2008.

In 2013 and 2014, each parish in the diocese participated in the Church Alive fundraising campaign.

St. Kilian parish designated the debt of the parish center and the new building initiative as its project to be funded. It raised $22.3 million, $20.4 million of which St. Kilian retained.

Now it is fundraising for the church.

In a homily delivered in June, the Rev. Charles Bober asked the parishioners to make a sacrifice and give to the campaign.“The parish, where we grew up, built incredibly beautiful churches, and they did so not because they had the money; they had very, very little, but what little they had they sacrificed. They sacrificed to build places where we worshipped and grew up. It is that kind of sacrifice we're asking of you,” he said.As of late February, the parish was still seeking contributions and had received $8 million toward its goal of $10 million.The property had been acquired over the years, Goetz said. The first 13 acres were acquired in 1986 and two more parcels were added after 2002 when the parish started to consider its plans for the future.A master plan for the property was approved in 2006 by the township. It specified the parish center as the first phase and the church as the second phase.The first phase also involved building a road with a stoplight. The parish also has built two parking lots.Goetz said pending the permitting process with the township, the parish hopes to break ground late this spring or early summer. The construction is expected to take 18 months, meaning the church would be ready for use in late 2016.The original hope was to have the project completed by 2017, which also happens to be the 100-year anniversary of the parish.After attendance at Mass became too large for the church in Mars, which seats about 260 people, the parish started using the auditorium at Mars High School.After the parish center was opened in 2008, Masses were held in its gymnasium, where volunteers would set up about 700 folding chairs every weekend.After Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic High School opened in 2014 in the township, Masses moved to that school's auditorium, which can hold 920 people.The church also has used the auditorium at Mars High School on some occasions, such as Christmas and Easter when there are larger crowds.The parish has worked to decorate and create a church sanctuary atmosphere in each of its temporary Mass locations, Bober said.“We've worked hard to make it as cohesive for worship as we can,” he said.However, one feature of a traditional sanctuary that has been missing is pews equipped with kneelers, he said. The new church will have that.The new building also will have a fellowship hall and meeting rooms, though the office will remain at the parish center.The old church will continue to be used. Currently it is used for weddings, funerals, the parish's food cupboard and weekly free meals.The parish has a membership of about 3,800 households and 10,100 people. Each weekend it holds seven Masses.The parish school has nearly 635 students in grades kindergarten through eight. The parish center also has a religious education program with more than 1,000 students.

St. Kilian Parish is preparing to break ground on a new church estimated to cost $10 million. The church will have a sanctuary to seat 1,200 people and will be on 33 acres bordering Franklin Road and Route 228 in Cranberry Township. The construction will be phase two of the development of that property, already home to the parish center and the parish school completed in 2008.