Bishop will miss installation

Bunbury's new multi million dollar Catholic cathedral is scheduled to have its spire installed this month but Bishop Gerard Holohan is likely to miss it.

Bishop Holohan arrived in Rome yesterday where he will attend the canonisation of Mary MacKillop on October 17, but the owner of the company contracted to build the spire said it could be installed as early as October 18.

Marindi Fabrications owner and foreman Peter Menegola said the spire would be the cathedral’s crowning jewel and had taken more than 50 hours to polish.

Weighing in at nearly two tonnes and constructed from polished steel, it will shine 50m above the Bunbury skyline.

The first cathedral to be built in Australia in 60 years, the city’s newest icon will accommodate 780 parishioners, surrounding them with more than 262sq m of stained glass designed by internationally recognised Australian artist Robert Juniper.

Bishops from around the State will attend a consecration ceremony in March next year to bless the 3000sq m cathedral, which has been designed to stand the test of time for 300 years.