$4-Million Grant to Aid Renovation of St. Vibiana’s
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State Assemblyman Gilbert Cedillo (D-Los Angeles) on Thursday announced a $4-million state grant to retrofit downtown Los Angeles’ original Roman Catholic cathedral, St. Vibiana’s, which was severely damaged in the 1994 Northridge earthquake.
The grant would be part of a $40-million commercial redevelopment of the 1876 cathedral.
The Catholic Church is building a $69.6-million downtown cathedral, Our Lady of the Angels, set to open next year. The church spent about $4 million to outfit the cathedral with 200 base isolators, the latest in earthquake safety technology.
St. Vibiana’s, a Spanish Baroque-style cathedral, was bought by developer Tom Gilmore for $4.6 million after it was condemned as a safety hazard after the 1994 quake.
Cedillo, Mayor Richard Riordan and Gilmore were scheduled to hold a news conference today detailing how the grant would be used. Gilmore is working with Cal State L.A. and the county’s High School for the Arts to create a performing arts center at St. Vibiana’s.
Gilmore also plans to convert the old rectory into a hotel and restaurant. An apartment building also is planned next to St. Vibiana’s.
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