Give
1. How big will the gym be?
The gym will have a full-sized basketball court with 14 feet around the perimeter. That amount of space will allow for six basketball hoops, volleyball, pickleball, and a variety of other sports games to utilize the gym. Storage will line the south end and should be ample to store equipment.
2. Where will the expansion be built?
The new gym and classrooms will be built next to the Kids Ministry wing on the west side of the building. The lower parking lot will be used for people to access the gym.
3. What kind of outreach opportunities will the gym space offer?
· First, our current ministries already provide great outreach opportunities within them. Adding a gym space positions these ministries, especially Kids and Students, to be even more outreach oriented.
· Our Outreach Ministry will have a wonderful tool for outreach events and initiatives that could include sports options and community events, especially in the winter months.
· Outside groups will have access to the gym space. Opportunities are endless but could include school groups, sports teams, clubs or simply birthday parties and other celebrations.
4. If we add a gym, more families will come to the Bellevue Campus, which will make the crowding in the Worship Center worse. What options do we have for addressing that issue?
We definitely hope that the gym will bring more people to our church. We also realize that growth would put more pressure on the Worship Center. The best answer to alleviate crowding is launching a third campus. That is why these two projects are tied together and why preparing for a third campus quickly is important. With that said, we have some limited options to address crowding in the Worship Center before a third campus is ready including squeezing people in, asking people to attend a different service or the Downtown Campus, and adding services. However, those options are only band-aids and not long-term solutions.
5. How many classrooms will be added and what will they be used for?
Club 45ers (fourth and fifth graders) have been crammed into a small space for too long. One new classroom will be used for that critical ministry during weekend services. Other classrooms will be used for Kids Ministry, Awana, and Student Ministries. However, there is a good possibility that one or two of the classrooms will be set up more as adult ministry spaces.
6. What additional costs will be associated with the Bellevue Campus expansion?
For this next fiscal year (October 1, 2023 – September 30, 2024) there are minimal additional costs since most of that time will be construction. Beyond that, there will be additional custodial needs along with additional insurance and utility costs. The Finance Committee has considered those costs when evaluating the financial health of our church.
7. Why not build a new worship center and convert the current worship center to a gym?
Building a new worship center was considered years ago. In the end, church leadership felt strongly about expanding the church footprint in Brown County, which led us to launching the Downtown Campus and heading down a multi-site plan. In addition to this vision, there are limits on what can be built at the Bellevue Campus. We are able to expand to a greater extent by launching a new campus.
1. Why are we looking at Southwest Brown County?
Our church vision directs us to influence Northeastern Wisconsin. A significant part of that strategy is being a multi-site church which couples the benefits of a big church with the size and accessibility of a smaller church. Both of our current campuses are east of the Fox River, so we wanted to expand to the west side. Southwest Brown County became a target for three main reasons: 1) Residential growth has boomed in that part of our area. 2) Spring Lake has enough members and attenders to build a core team. Multi-site success needs a solid team of 100-150 people to launch a site. 3) Alleviates pressure on the Bellevue Campus. 75% of Spring Lakers in that area attend the Bellevue Campus. On top of those reasons, there are plenty of people in the area that need to hear the gospel.
2. What type of facility as we planning for?
We are using our Downtown Campus as a blueprint which translates to roughly 25,000 square feet of space. Ideally, we’d like a facility with high visibility, ample parking, and a variety of ministry spaces (high ceilings for a worship center, kids space, offices, etc).
3. Have we considered existing evangelical churches in the area?
Yes! We have reached out to churches in the area and have met with a few of them. Our intention is to grow by reaching unchurched people in the area, not through transfer growth.
4. Will additional staff be needed for the Lawrence Campus?
Yes! We expect about 2.5 additional headcounts will be needed between ministry staff and operations staff.
5. How will teaching look with a third campus?
Our church is still dedicated to in-person teaching at all campuses. About six times a year we utilize a video message at all campuses. We do not plan on changing that frequency. We also believe strongly in having a variety of pastors on the teaching team. The Southwest Campus will hear from our entire teaching team. The campus will also have a Campus Pastor that they will hear from more frequently (just like our two current campuses).
6. Will the additional campus spread our teaching pastors too thin?
Over the past couple years, we have added teaching pastors into our rotation in expectation for launching a third campus in the future. We believe we can handle the extra teaching opportunities without spreading our teaching pastors too thin. While we see teaching pastors more often, we have plans for all staffing areas to assure we can care for our people well over all campuses without overextending our staff.
Have more questions?
Pastor Jeff Pittman would love to address any questions or thoughts you may have. Feel free to reach out to him at pastorjeff@springlakechurch.org
