 By 1929 , St. Peter was crowded for all three Masses on Sunday morning . There were so many people that the balcony , the sanctuary , and both sacristies were opened seating . Eventually the priests opened the doors of the church and hundreds of people stood outside on the steps to hear the Mass . Despite all of these accommodations , there were still many people who were turned away because there was not enough space to accommodate them . There were about a thousand families who belonged to St. Peter parish , but the church itself only had about two hundred seats in the pews . In 1933 , Bishop Hugh Boyle suggested the construction of a larger church and the congregation decided to construct a larger building . The new church building was constructed by the parishioners , who broke ground in May 1941 and three years later dedicated the new building . 
