The Diocese
Posted: 01/17/2025
On Saturday, January 11, 2025, St. Mary Armenian Apostolic Church of Costa Mesa held a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of construction of the Stambolian Family Assembly Hall.
With benefactors of the Assembly Hall Mr. and Mrs. Aris and Angela Stambolian, members of the Stambolian Family, and faithful in attendance, the event was officiated by H.E. Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America. The Primate was accompanied by the Very Rev. Frs. Yeremia Abgaryan and Anania Tsaturyan as well as St. Mary’s founding priest, Fr. Moushegh Tashjian.
In addition to esteemed members of the clergy, the ceremony was attended by John Stephens, the Mayor of Costa Mesa and Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley. While Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris was not able to attend, her office was represented by Michael Tou, a member of her staff.
The ribbon cutting ceremony represented the culmination of over years of planning which began with St. Mary’s 2005 acquisition of a six-unit apartment building located adjacent to the church’s property. That purchase was followed by St. Mary’s 2014 purchase of a duplex which was situated next door to the apartment building. With these acquisitions complete, St. Mary hit the drawing board. Fortunately, one of St. Mary’s church members, Mr. Aram Bassenian, a former principal of the world renown architectural firm Bassenian-Lagoni, agreed to draft the conceptual redevelopment plan for St. Mary’s new campus.
With that master plan and construction documents in hand, on July 25, 2018, the Planning Commission of the City of Costa Mesa approved St. Mary’s application for a conditional use permit. On April 20, 2021, St. Mary hired a general contractor and work on the redevelopment of the church’s site began. A Building Committee was appointed by the Parish to manage the project and the committee decided to divide the course of construction into three phases.
The first phase of construction consisted of: (1) demolishing an existing building on the church property as well as a small assembly hall behind the sanctuary; (2) renovating the interior and enhancing the exterior of the sanctuary; and (3) constructing a new 5.3K square foot educational building which has six classrooms, a large conference room, church offices, and a library/social center. The second phase of the project consisted of: (1) demolishing the apartment building and duplex; and (2) installing a new parking lot with lighting and extensive landscaping.
The third and final phase consisted of constructing a new 8K square foot assembly hall. The exterior design of the assembly hall incorporates classical Armenian architectural elements which adorn the doors and windows as well as a wheel of eternity above the entablature which symbolizes time, the universe, and the eternal nature of life. The assembly hall has been named after Mr. Aris Stambolian and his family who are the grand benefactors of the facility.
The Stambolian Family Assembly Hall can seat over 300 people who will be serviced by a full commercial kitchen. The hall also offers a state-of-the-art audio-visual system as well as a large entry reception hall and separate bridal room with private bath. St. Mary’s Construction Committee Chairman Tony Markarian noted that “St. Mary has invested over $15M in land acquisition and construction costs for the three phases of the project and we are proud of what our Parish has accomplished.”
“The redevelopment of St. Mary’s campus represents the culmination of two decades of dedicated hard work and financial support of the faithful. St. Mary continues to be the spiritual beacon for Armenian living in Orange County and the new assembly hall will give parishioners a venue to celebrate couples being wed in holy matrimony and children being baptized in the 1,700-year-old Armenian Christian faith,” added Mark V. Asdourian, Chairman of St. Mary’s Parish Council and Chairman of the Building Committee.
St. Mary will be holding a gala event to celebrate the launch of the Stambolian Family Assembly Hall on February 8, 2025. Tickets for the event are in short supply and can be purchased by calling Tony Markarian at 714.580.7288 or Natalie Balikciyan at 949.929.6017, co-chairs for the event.
