Cleanup work is ongoing after fire damaged the roof and caused water damage inside the building on August 11.
Services will resume in the cathedral on Sunday, but repairing the effects of the blaze will take much longer.
Yesterday, work was under way to remove the choir stalls, and once they were out, the staging at that end of the church would be dismantled because it was waterlogged, the Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral, the Very Rev Dr Tony Curtis said.
"They’re going to rip it all out so we can get ready to take the current roof down and put a new roof up," he said.
"I imagine we’re going to have several months of that because we’re going to have to build a scaffolding platform underneath the roof and a tent above it so we can gradually dismantle the roof and reinstate it."
The full cost to repair the damage was still unknown, but minor damage to the organ alone was expected to cost between $15,000 and $20,000.
There was also a substantial amount of work to be done in terms of the electrics.
"From what we know so far, pretty much all of the heating, such as it was, is going to have to come out and downstairs in the crypt all of the electrics have already come out because they’ve been absolutely drenched with water."
The fire happened just after a $150,000 restoration of the cathedral was completed.
"We’re probably looking at short term, get the cathedral up and running, and longer term, over the next couple of years, working with our partners in the church and council and heritage organisations to put it all back together."
Despite the upheaval, the damage also presented an opportunity, he said.
"We’ve had a bit of a dream to make that end of the cathedral much more accessible and friendly and usable by the whole community.
"If we can create a really lovely function space, and space for community groups and things to use, then hopefully some good will come out of it all."
