Archbishop says he'll discuss parish closing plan

DETROIT (WXYZ) - The leader of 1.3 million Roman Catholics in southeastern Michigan says he'll announce Monday the results of a review of a proposal to merge or close dozens of parishes in the face of population shifts within the Archdiocese of Detroit.

The archdiocese said Thursday that Archbishop Allen Vigneron will talk Monday afternoon about the plans for the realignment of the 267 parishes.

On Dec. 1, Vigneron said the archdiocese would review a plan to close nine parishes and merge 60 others into 21. A committee of lay leaders helped draft that plan.

The archdiocese says Vigneron completed the plan earlier this month, and its results were mailed out this week to priests and lay members.