St. Paul's United Methodist Church will re-open Feb. 11 after a three-year vacancy allowed contractors to rebuild parts of the church destroyed in a 1987 fire.

"Two services will be held that Sunday morning with a small celebration between the two in the social room," said Scott Healy, head of the church's information committee. "That evening is another celebration with a lot of singing to celebrate the opening of the church."

The recommendation for the opening was made and approved by the church executive building committee at a meeting Tuesday night, Healy said. The committee consists of about 20 people who have been leaders in the rebuilding process working with the engineers, contractors, and architects.

The fire, a result of faulty wiring in the attic, destroyed the original structure during the church's centennial anniversary, less than a year after $600,000 in renovations had been completed.

The rebuilding process officially began in October 1988 after a year of architectural planning, although the idea of reconstruction came much sooner.

"We started thinking of rebuilding while the embers of the fire were still warm," Healy said.

The new building will possess new features advantageous to the congregation, said Louis Geschwindner, chairman of engineering and construction for the rebuilding project.

The previous building, constructed in the late 1800s, was not made to comply with today's safety standards. The new structure, 109 McAllister St., was built with regard to all building codes, Geschwindner said.

The seating area has been enlarged from about 500 seats to 600, Geschwindner said. The congregation now faces McAllister Street instead of College Avenue, as it did in 1987.

A new lobby exists in the church, connecting the Wesley student center with St. Paul's Church. During the time that the congregation was without a home, the Wesley Foundation provided room for the 2,000 members to view services on closed-circuit television.

All internal work will be finished by the first day of services, with the completion of the new lobby scheduled for the end of this month, Geschwindner said. Outside work, such as brickwork and shrubbery will be finished in the spring and summer.

The cost for the reconstruction was $2.25 million, said John Walizer, chairman of the finance committee for the rebuilding project. Most of the funds came from St. Paul's fire insurance benefits, which payed for the rebuilding of the church from its original design. The new improvements seen in the present structure were financed by donations from the congregation, other churches, and local businesses.

"Throughout the year of 1990 there will be other celebrations, yet to be determined, in recognition of those who provided for the rebuilding," Healy said.

Much of the original congregation that attended services in the original church is expected to return.

"Personally, I think our membership is stronger now -- we bonded together through this tragedy," Walizer said. "The church is not the building, it's the people."