Yet More On Holy Martyrs Murrieta

Different research directions between my regular correspondent and me seem to have converged, so that the puzzle is beginning to become clearer. The first major find was the probable angel who is financing the project, Bernie Truax II. I had earlier speculated that the angel could have been Timothy Busch, although the project seemed to be somewhat outside his area and possibly too small for him. Mr Truax, who has been a major figure in real estate and construction in Riverside County, as well as a philanthropic figure, is clearly a much better fit.

My regular correspondent ran across the name in looking at the prospectus for a St Francis College Prep High School. Truax's thumbnail as a member of the school's board of directors listed him as a Past Senior Warden, St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church and Chairman of Board of Directors, St. Margaret’s Episcopal School. So there's clearly an Anglican connection, and it would explain a philanthropic motive in the Holy Martyrs project.

However, I discovered separately that the St Francis High School project ran afoul of Bp Barnes in 2016. At the time, there were two competing plans for a Catholic high school in the Temecula-Murrieta area, and the other one, St Jeanne de Lestonnac school, which was already a K-8 institution run by the Order of the Company of Mary, Our Lady, gained Barnes's support.

The St Francis plan seems to have been independent of the Church, sponsored by "groups of local parents", although the history on the web site suggests it couldn't quite get its act together, at least until Mr Truax, presumably a convert to Catholicism, got involved. But in 2016, Bp Barnes threw his considerable weight behind the St Jeanne proposal.

St. Francis Preparatory High School had named key members of its administration and governing board, and it vowed to open in temporary buildings in the fall.

Planning for St. Francis had been under way for more than a year before its backers persuaded developer A.G. Kading to repurpose a project of his that is ready to leap off the drawing board.

Kading’s 13-acre site west of Interstate 15 in Murrieta had been planned as a $50 million mixed-use college project. But Kading has agreed to instead make the complex the home of St. Francis if that plan takes shape.

St. Francis supporters welcomed newspaper interviews and invited a reporter to a Nov. 19 event aimed at spotlighting their plan and introducing their key players. St Francis supporters, who include some prominent Catholics and community leaders, have continued to press forward as they contemplate offering classes this fall in temporary buildings.

Although the St Francis web site still exists, the FAQ page says, in response to the question "When will St. Francis College Prep begin classes?"

St. Francis College Preparatory High School is currently researching Community Support and demand to determine the most feasible date and location for the start of classroom operations. Information will be shared as soon as it becomes available! Please visit our Homepage and fill out the “Contact Us” page to join our mailing list and be included on future communications regarding St. Francis College Prep.

I would think that from Bp Barnes's perspective, the St Francis project would not have seemed stable, while the sisters could build on existing programs and experience, so this could have been an easy call for him. Interestingly, late 2016 marks the time of the initial discussions leading to the startup of the Holy Martyrs Murrieta project.

One suspects that there may be some distance and mutual mistrust between Bp Barnes and Mr Truax, and that the Holy Martyrs Murrieta project would not be under Barnes's jurisdiction could well have been a point in its favor for Mr Truax. An Ordinariate information night was held at the Truax Building in Temecula, a major asset of the Truax firm, on September 20, 2017. My regular correspondent noted that pictures of the meeting posted later seemed to feature easels with floorplans.

Since the Truax firm specializes in construction and project management, I would assume that the renovations to the former gym are being done as an in-kind donation. I also wonder if the building itself is owned by Truax, or if the ownership is in some way connected with Truax interests, so that the considerable rent for such a facility could also be underwritten.

Truax, influential as he may be in the Temecula-Murrieta area, is not a player on the same scale as Timothy Busch. In addition, he's been associated with one iffy project, the St Francis High School. And if his curent support of Holy Martyrs Murrieta is intended in any way as a thumb in Bp Barnes's eye, this doesn't bode well for its ultimate success.