Diocese to unveil plans for new Newman Center on UMass campus An artist conception of the 400-seat chapel in the new Newman Center. Project plans are expected to be discussed at a Planning Board meeting via Zoom on Wednesday. Submitted Photo An artist’s conception of the new Newman Center shows a 19,055-square-foot, two-story building on the opposite side of North Pleasant from the current building. Published: 11/17/2020 2:22:41 PM AMHERST — Preliminary plans for the new building to house the Newman Catholic Center on the University of Massachusetts campus will be presented to the Planning Board Wednesday. Vinsu Shah, a representative of CBT Architects of Boston, will discuss designs for the project, which would replace the existing Newman Center at 472 North Pleasant St. that opened in April 1963. In August, the Springfield Catholic Diocese sold the building for $12.5 million to the UMass Building Authority.