Greek Orthodox Metropolis to break ground on new center in South Strabane
Courtesy of Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh
A rendering of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis Center to be built in South Strabane Township
Courtesy of Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh
Rendering of exterior of Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh headquarters
The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh will break ground on a new 15,000-square-foot facility in South Strabane Township next week.
A groundbreaking ceremony will be held at 11 a.m. July 18 in the parking lot of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at 525 Fairway St., whose property neighbors the 20-acre lot where construction will occur.
The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh encompasses Greek Orthodox parishes throughout Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and eastern and central Ohio. The new Metropolis Center will include offices, a conference room, chapel and multipurpose hall.
South Strabane supervisors approved the project in October 2021.
“I think the township is looking forward to having the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh operating its headquarters here,” said Township Manager Brandon Stanick. “We hope our location in South Strabane fills their need in the tri-state area.”
Nick Lekas, project manager, said the new center is a long time coming, and a big departure from the organization’s current home in Shadyside, which was originally purchased as a personal home for the bishop in 1955.
Metropolitan Savas Zembillas decided something a change was needed when he took the job in 2011.
“About a dozen years ago, we got a new bishop. He said, ‘This cannot be. This will not allow us to grow and gather,'” Lekas said.
Lekas described the current center as cramped. A half-dozen employees work out of bedrooms, and just as many people are all that the building’s chapel will accommodate.
The new Metropolis Center will be accessible by a driveway from Enterprise Road, according to Lekas. The space will include a chapel that can seat more than 100 people.
“There are three or four times in the Orthodox calendar where there are feast days. We could have 50 cars. That will be particularly infrequent. This is not meant to be a parish,” Lekas said.
Lekas added that the Metropolis Center will be a space for inter-parish gatherings, youth groups, priest training and parish leadership training.
“All of this stuff usually happens in hotels, or you lean on a local parish,” Lekas said. “This is a gathering space. That is the purpose. The purpose is community.”
The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh raised about $10 million for the project, including a $6 million donation from Peter Girorgi, of Reading, and the Giorgi Family Foundation.
The building will also include office space for staff, a kitchen and a dining hall.
Construction is expected to be completed in 2024.