Chapel to close in 2015 for renovations

The Duke Chapel will close for renovations beginning in May 2015.

The restoration—which will take approximately a year to complete—was announced by the University Wednesday. It will include rehabilitating the ceiling and replacing the Chapel's original roof.

Weekly worship services, weddings and special events will be held in other locations during the renovations, but the Chapel and Religious Life offices—housed in the basement—will be able to remain open throughout the process, according to a Duke press release.

"There is never a good time to close Duke's most iconic building, but we're acting now to maintain and preserve the Chapel as one of the last great examples of neo-Gothic architecture on a collegiate campus," Executive Vice President Tallman Trask said in the release.

Repairs the Chapel's ceilings and windows began earlier this year, though it originally was not clear if a closure would be required to finish the work.

Built in 1932, the Chapel was reviewed in 2012 by a team of engineers for safety and stability. The renovations come in response to this review and will be conducted by Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc.

The press release notes that Sunday worship services will be held in Baldwin Auditorium during the summer and Page Auditorium during the Fall, and Duke-affiliated couples will be given special preference for weddings in the Sarah P. Duke Gardens and at the Washington Duke Inn and Golf Club. It is not yet clear where funerals will be held.