Covenant News - Numerous Churches Involved in Building Projects

Covenant News

Numerous Churches Involved in Building Projects

CHICAGO, IL (April 15, 2002) - A number of congregations in the Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC) are involved in building projects throughout North America. Following is an update of projects, listed by conference:

CENTRAL

Mount Prospect, Illinois: Northwest Covenant Church has secured and paid for a piece of land in nearby Arlington Heights. A second phase of a "Build the Vision" drive is being considered to pay for a new building. The congregation has begun a master plan for the facility, to be built as a multi-phase project. The current building will be sold.
Northwest Covenant is using the newly acquired property for Vacation Bible School as well as youth and community events, giving the church increased visibility in Arlington Heights. The church-run Northwest Music Academy is being held in a house that stands on the site of the future church building. The congregation averages more than 250 in worship attendance. The pastor is Dr. Herbert Jacobsen.

EAST COAST

East Greenwich, Rhode Island: Christ Church is in the midst of a capital campaign drive to raise money for a building project set to begin next year. Committees are assessing the situation to finalize a plan for construction. Christ Church averages around 450 for Sunday worship and serves more than 700 individuals each week through youth programs and other organizations, according to the church's director of connecting ministries, Ginny Hudson. A recent addition of a youth pastor provides other ministry options for the growing congregation, whose senior pastor is Lyle Mook.
Thomaston, Connecticut: The Covenant Church of Thomaston is preparing to begin building a 6,000-square-foot addition, which will include a new fellowship hall, classroom space and a youth center and kitchen. Pastor Tim Olsen said that the project will cost around $650,000 and will take approximately six months to complete. He hopes to have the expansion finished by the end of the year. In July 2000, a home that housed refugees form Kosovo burned - the building had served as a parsonage for the church. The church had a dedication for the building project last November.

GREAT LAKES

Allegan, Michigan: Christ Community Church began a "Building on the Promises" campaign last fall in an effort to add a building expansion to the church. According to a recent church newsletter, phase one of the project will focus on building additional classrooms and will cost approximately $640,000. Phases two and three will cost a combined total of $760,000 and will include the installation of an elevator, a multiple-use activity space, additional storage and the addition of permanent walls as needed.
Powell, Ohio: Sawmill Covenant Church, located in a northwest suburb of Columbus, recently acquired 5.5 acres as the site for a new building. land for a new building. National Covenant Properties assisted in financing. A capital campaign fund drive will begin this fall, said pastor John Atkinson. The estimated cost is $1.5 million. Sawmill Covenant Church was officially founded in November 1998 after core group meetings began a year earlier. The average worship attendance is 170. For more information about the church and its building project, visit the church website at www.sawmillcovenantchurch.org.

MIDWEST

Salina, Kansas: First Covenant Church is in the second year of a three-year capital campaign drive for a new building east of town. A building committee is currently working with an architect on the project, although no official groundbreaking date has been set. First Covenant Church, whose senior pastor is Dan Pietrzyk, has an average worship attendance of 764 according to recent statistics provided by the denomination. The church will celebrate its 125th anniversary in 2003.

NORTH PACIFIC

Olympia, Washington: River Ridge Covenant Church is well into its building expansion project of 4,800 square feet, according to office manager Debbie Lewis. The church hopes to have the expansion project finished by June. The expansion includes several classrooms and an administrative wing, according to Lewis. The church, which was founded nearly nine years ago, has an average worship attendance of 400. The pastor is Mark Orr. River Ridge received a loan from National Covenant Properties to help expedite the process of expansion.
Sammamish, Washington: Pine Lake Covenant Church has raised $1.7 million in cash and pledges towards a building project that the church hopes to begin in the coming months. Groundbreaking is expected later this spring after building permit paperwork is completed. The addition to the church will be 15,185 square feet and will include a multipurpose room, a youth center and café, classrooms and storage rooms. The cost of the project will be $3.7 million, according to a church brochure. National Covenant Properties is assisting with financing. Pine Lake Covenant is located in a suburb of Seattle and has an average worship attendance of about 540. The pastor of the church is Christian Brueninger.
Selah, Washington: Selah Covenant Church recently voted to move to another location after fire destroyed the church's annex last August. The annex, which housed Christian education and youth activities, has been leveled and the land is being used as a parking lot. The sanctuary, which is in a nearby building and seats 230, is still standing. The congregation decided to move its Sunday morning worship services and Christian education classes to a local elementary school last fall, so that both worship and Sunday school classes could be held at one site. The Sunday morning service at the elementary school averages about 160. A Saturday night service (which began last summer) has attracted about 100 each week and is being held in the church's sanctuary. Three committees have been set up, according to associate pastor Marc Strobel. One group will search for land for another facility, another group will examine building design for the church and a third group will discuss methods of fundraising to pay for the new facility. Selah Covenant Church, founded in 1908, is located in a town of 6,000 located in central Washington. Marc Peterson is the senior pastor.

NORTHWEST

Biwabik, Minnesota: The Evangelical Covenant Church of Biwabik is in the midst of raising funds to continue a building project that has stretched more than three years since fire destroyed its building August 23, 1998. Thus far, it has cost $180,000 to complete phase one of the building project, including a gift of $27,200 from the denomination's Kingdom Builders/Frontier Friends program. Phase two includes installation of plumbing and a heated floor, electrical, insulation and drywall work and the siding of outside walls. A 2002 fundraising campaign entitled "Catch the Vision-Finish the Work" is under way and pastor Jeffrey Jones hopes to raise $60,000 of the $160,000 that is needed to finish construction in May. The church desires to move into the new facility by Christmas.
Duluth, Minnesota: Lakeview Covenant Church had a delay in its capital campaign drive, but its March 16 event was a big success, raising $69,000 in pledges. The event, called "Testing Our Hearts, Building His House," was attended by nearly 200. Tim Ek, pastor of Maple Grove Covenant Church in the Twin Cities, was the guest speaker for the event, which included the ceremonial burning of the mortgage of the church. The church is officially debt-free and is hoping to add a $2.4 million education classroom and office complex to its current facility. The congregation hopes to raise the down payment for that expansion, $450,000, by the end of 2002.
Sioux Falls, South Dakota: Prairie Hills Covenant Church finished a capital campaign and raised more than $430,000 in pledges for a new building. Don Fensterman, who works with the Evangelical Covenant Church's Department of Church Growth and Evangelism, assisted with the capital project as part of the Churches Planting Churches ministry. Some of the funds will go towards the purchase of land for a new church, Living Springs Covenant Church in nearby Brandon. Prairie Hills Covenant is seeking a buyer for its current facility before settling on a groundbreaking date. Twelve acres of land has already been purchased, said pastor Dawn Burnett. Prairie Hills Covenant has an average worship attendance of 140 and the current sanctuary seats approximately 180.
New Richmond, Wisconsin: Prairieview Covenant Church met for Easter services in its new building, which is more than halfway completed, said Nancy King, wife of pastor Rudy King. The plumbing is finished, the kitchen is operational and carpeting has been laid in the fellowship hall and narthex. About $500,000 has been spent on the construction process thus far, which is about half of the estimated cost. The decrease in cost is due to the 17,000 volunteer hours donated by various individuals and groups. The church hopes to finish the Christian education space later this year. Construction on a sanctuary will then begin.

PACIFIC SOUTHWEST

Chandler, Arizona: Hope Covenant Church is expected to begin building soon on a new five-acre site, according to pastor Duane Cross. The church celebrated a groundbreaking service last November 4. The building is expected to be finished in the fall. The project, estimated at $1.4 million, was aided by a loan from National Covenant Properties. The building is 14,000 square feet and includes a sanctuary that seats 400. Hope Covenant, founded in 1987, averages more than 220 in worship attendance, an increase of 50 within the past five months.
Davis, California: University Covenant Church is purchasing land for a new facility and hopes to break ground in August, said office manager Wendy Tichota. The design phase of the three-phase project was to have been completed in April. A capital campaign drive ended in December. Phase one construction will include children's Sunday school classrooms, offices and a multipurpose room that will house youth group activities. The multipurpose room will serve as a temporary sanctuary for worship services. Phase two will include the construction of a sanctuary that will seat at least 750. Phase three will include the construction of adult education classrooms.
Pleasant Hill, California: Hope Center Covenant Church is working with city planning committee administrators on expanding its existing building, which is located in a small strip mall. A capital campaign drive is already under way. Hope Center Covenant is located in the East Bay area of Northern California, within 20 miles of San Francisco. The church, which was founded in 1979, has an average worship attendance of 584. Dean Honnette is the senior pastor.

Periodic updates of building projects will be found on the Covenant web site at www.covchurch.org.

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