Updated at 5:37 p.m.

Springfield Catholic Bishop Mitchell Rozanski wants to merge Cathedral High and Holyoke Catholic High, and build the new school a new building. The announcement on Monday followed months of discussions in the diocese over the future of Cathedral.

The school has operated out of a temporary home in Wilbraham since its Springfield building was destroyed in the 2011 tornado.

Rozanski first came to Springfield last summer, and this fall questioned whether it made sense to rebuild the school, given financial pressures and years of declining enrollment.

On Monday, he said it understands if a merged high school leads to a sense of loss among those with connections to Cathedral or Holyoke Catholic.

“Certainly the two legacies of those schools [are] deep in the hearts of alumni, of the current students, of parents who sent children there, grandparents who sent children there,” the bishop said. “Deep, deep in their hearts.”

Rozanski said he does not know what the new school would be called.

“No name has surfaced yet,” Rozanski said. “We feel that that would be part of the process of bringing those two entities together with the input of as many people as we could have.”

The bishop also would not commit to building the school on Surrey Road in Springfield, Cathedral’s former site.

In a statement, Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno says the city will support a merged high school, if it is built on Surrey Road.

A group called Committee For Cathedral Action has also been vocal about reusing the East Forest Park location. The group’s Al diLascia on Monday was frustrated so many questions remain.

“It’s gong to be really close to six years before we get a new school – maybe longer than that – from the date of the tornado,” diLascia says. “I just don’t think any of us should be satisfied with that.”

But diLascia says he is thankful Rozanski has committed to building a new school.

Rozanski says the rebuilding cost will be covered by insurance money and federal disaster funding.

New England Public Radio’s Kari Njiiri contributed to this report.