3-year closure for Air Force Academy chapel renovations set to begin in September

By

The Associated Press

An Air Force Academy employee tested positive for COVID-19 and is currently receiving care at a Colorado Springs hospital and is on the mend. (Trevor Cokley/Air Force)

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado has announced it will close its cadet chapel for extensive renovations beginning in September.

KOAA-TV reports the military academy says Sept. 3 is the final day scheduled for visits prior to the chapel’s three-year closure.

Officials at the academy near Colorado Springs say a $158 million restoration and preservation project is scheduled to begin Nov. 1.

Officials say work crews are expected to remove furniture and conduct other preparation work between Sept. 3 and Nov. 1.

The chapel was originally scheduled to close in June, but the project was delayed.

The Air Force says the funds were reallocated for repairs at Florida’s Tyndall Air Force Base following Hurricane Michael in October 2018.

The chapel is registered as a national historic landmark.