Repairs Almost Done, St. Patrick’s Cathedral Is Set to Shine

After three years and about $177 million, New York City’s most famous cathedral is nearly ready for its close-up.

From the spires 330 feet above the sidewalk to boreholes 2,000 feet below ground, nearly every inch of the Roman Catholic St. Patrick’s Cathedral has been freshened.

The final touches are continuing and the remaining scaffolding that surrounds the altar will be removed by the end of the month, at least in August and—even if it takes divine intervention—“certainly before September,” said Msgr. Robert Ritchie, the cathedral’s rector.

Though the final push is in anticipation of a visit by Pope Francis in September, the restoration is decades in the making.