Ida Lee Willis Historic Preservation Project Award

We are honored to announce the St. Joseph Catholic Church has been selected to be the 2024 recipient of the Ida Lee Willis Historic Preservation Project Award presented by the Ida Lee Willis Memorial Foundation. The ceremony will take place this Wednesday, May 22nd at the Old Kentucky State Capitol Building in downtown Frankfort.

The church was originally designed in the German Romanesque style, over a 14-year period from 1870 to 1884. In 2018, EOA began the interior and exterior envelope restoration of the church, bringing together many artisans to resurrect the sanctuary back to its former glory.

EOA’s scope included structural stabilization of roof and floor connections, exterior envelope restoration, renovation of restrooms to increase capacity and sensitive modifications to provide ADA access to the main entrance to the church. Conrad Schmitt Studios, out of New Berlin, Wisconsin, took on the challenge of restoring and re-inventing the interior of the sanctuary with historic photographs providing clues to stencil patterns and colors. Replication of these elements contributes to the authentic historic character of the interior.

Photography: @benjaminnorton

Contractor: Scott, Murphy & Daniel @murphy_construction_group
Structural: @emcnashville
Interior Restoration: @conradschmittstudios