Holy Ascension Builder Information page
This page last updated: July 2025
We are looking for a builder who would like to build our new church.
We are trying to provide everything you might need to make this estimate on this page, but we’d be glad to provide more details or answer questions as they arise. Our current internal estimates for cost based on other similar buildings have us at about 2.5 million, but we are looking to get a more accurate estimate from a construction professional.
Overview: We have a ten acre square lot at 13526 29 Mile Rd, Albion MI 49068. There is already a building on this lot, which will we intend to become our church hall/office area. The new church will be 50 feet south of the current building and will be connected by a breezeway (see site plan).
As you will see from the plans, this will be no ordinary modern church. We hope its traditional old-world style will attract a builder who is interested in more than simply a utility space, but something profound and beautiful, which will be built to last for centuries. To get a sense of what we’re after, and the ethos of the whole project, please see our “Holy Ascension Building Project” page.
In short, we are committed to the aesthetic and transcendent aspects of this project. So, we are not simply looking for the lowest possible bid, not even necessarily bids at all. Rather, we would like to find a builder who wants to create something that will awaken the viewer to what beautiful architecture and craftsmanship can achieve. The building itself would only be the first of several projects we have planned for this property.
Resources:
- Here is the external rendering from our designer from the south and west.
- Here are the architectural plans, completed (barring mistakes) July 2025:
- The main design is in the “A” pages, followed by a site plan and structural pages as the “AT” plans.
- The pages that follow have the HVAC, plumbing, and electrical designs.
- The first 37 pages, the “A” pages are also available in CAD Format.
- Here is a picture of the 3D modeled site plan.
- Here are several internal renderings taken from views using Rhinoceros 3D modeling of the building.
- Here is a detailed topographical survey in PDF format, and here is the CAD (dwg) format of the same survey.
- To see what would be involved in building something like this, you may find it helpful to view some construction pictures of a very similar building currently going up in West Virginia. It was designed by the same person and has many identical features: dome, arches, etc.
- Our church’s designer is Andrew Gould of New World Byzantine Designs. Our local architect of record is Jeannette Woodard of Woodard & Associates Architects, Inc. of Jackson, Michigan.
- The site plan has already gone through Sheridan Township’s planning commission process and has been approved by the township Board.
- We are compiling some information on the source of some of the specified materials and specified artisans in the plans. The list in progress is here.
The site: The location is just off I-94, so easy to access. We have already done much site work to clear trees, arrange for drainage and utilities, parking and driveways, a cemetery, etc. We plan to have the site completely ready for construction of the main church shortly. The building that is already there has bathrooms, a kitchen, and plenty of space (3K sq ft) and tables for eating, planning, storage of tools, taking breaks etc., which we plan to make available during the construction phase. We also have a 30×40 pole barn on site that can be used for storing construction equipment. The site is flat and has plenty of staging room around the area where the church will be placed. If there would be any workers coming with RVs from places further away, we can also accommodate water/electric/disposal.
Contact us: If you would be able to estimate this project, we would love to hear from you. We hope to gather together all of the relevant information a prospective builder might want to know on this page, but if there is information missing, we would be glad to add it.
You can contact Fr Joshua Frigerio at 269-830-6297, or send an email to .
Thank you and may God bless you!
Fr Joshua Frigerio, priest of Holy Ascension Orthodox Church of Albion, Michigan.