DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) - Nearly a dozen church properties eastern Iowa are getting roof repairs because of a tornado last fall, including some projects that have required intricate scaffolding that surrounds soaring spires.
The damage to the Davenport area churches was caused by an Oct. 6 tornado, the Quad-City Times reported . Many of the churches are historic sites that are religious and cultural landmarks in the community.
Insurance agent Dan Molyneaux Jr. said the Diocese of Davenport inspected the roofs of church properties in the Iowa Quad-Cities and determined that 11 sites need repairs.
Deacon David Montgomery, a diocesan spokesman, said the insurance claim was estimated at $11.5 million.
More than $21,000 has been spent on the 10 building permits that have been issued by the cities of Davenport and Bettendorf, Molyneaux said. An additional $4.8 million has been spent on the buildings and labor, he said. That cost doesn’t include the scaffolding or the overseeing time of managers.
Ken Bonus is president and CEO of GC3 LLC, the West Des Moines company that is overseeing the repair projects. The firm specializes in disaster assessment and reconstruction.
Bonus said construction began in May and should be completed in November. He said between 80 and 100 people are working on the projects daily.
Some of the scaffolding rests against the church structure itself. The framework needed to be engineered in a way that wouldn’t damage the church, Bonus said.
He said another challenge was scheduling work to accommodate the churches’ worship schedules.
Churches in Davenport being repaired include Sacred Heart Cathedral, St. Alphonsus and Our Lady of Victory. Our Lady of Lourdes in Bettendorf is also being repaired.
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This story has been corrected to show the damaged churches are in eastern Iowa, not western Michigan.
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Information from: Quad-City Times, https://www.qctimes.com
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