On 1 March, to the applause of several hundred onlookers, the copper spires were lifted into place on the Western Towers . Crosses were then screwed into place and blessed by Bishop John from the cherry picker. This marked the beginning of the final stage of the completion of St John’s Cathedral.

The sandstone pinnacles at the corners of the towers have been completed. Louvres, made from north Queensland beech, are being inserted and leaded in place in the traditional manner and bird-proof netting is being installed. The scaffold will be progressively removed from the southern tower by the end of September while scaffold around the northern tower will be removed to roof level to allow continued access to the Central Tower construction.

Meanwhile work has progressed on the Central ( Bell ) Tower. More than half of the stonework has been erected. While this continues the roof is being constructed adjacent to the Cathedral. The main frame of the roof has been built of recycled timber including ironbark and spotted gum salvaged from the Albion Flour Mill. The framework is currently being sheeted with 19mm hoop pine ply. The next step is a waterproof membrane and finally the copper sheeting will be added. It is planned to lift the whole structure, a weight of 25 tonnes, into place in late November.

Prior to this, the two additional tenor bells purchased from Ayre and Smith in England will be positioned. This will increase the Cathedral bells to a peel of twelve. The design of the roof structure takes particular note of the acoustic requirements of the bells and the sound will be further managed by the inclusion of special adjustable baffles for use both during practice and full tolling.

All scaffolding will be removed by the end of February 2009.

The West Facade is now complete, including all niches, and can be viewed free of scaffolding for the first time.