We've received a lot of feedback and questions from Imagine Sunday and the Open House forums. Here are answers to some of the questions that have been raised (some have been edited/combined for clarity and to eliminate redundancy):
Q: Will facility be on Bozeman water or sewer system? Or well and septic at the public system level?
The S. 19th property is outside of the city boundaries so the plan is to use wells and septic for the new facility.
Q: Can we incorporate the stained glass windows/beams/altar/stone/etc. in our new facility? I heard a rumor that we may be moving the Chapel to our new site?
The existing chapel as a whole cannot be moved (unless someone wants to disassemble it and haul the stones over there and re-assemble it piece by piece!) and using any existing part of the S. Black property would be contingent on coming to an agreement with any potential buyer to allow us to take certain items. As such, stained glass or an altar might be easier to negotiate for and move, whereas structural elements like beams and stone would take more planning. It is our firm intent to keep some historical elements of our existing property and incorporate them in meaningful ways in the new facility.
Q: What is the number of people we expect to seat in the worship area?
Seating capacity in the sanctuary is approximately 400 seats and there is potential for overflow seating in case of a very large event.
Q: Could we have a playground? A picnic area? It would serve both community and congregational picnics.
We certainly have plenty of room for both on the S. 19th site but the size and extent of a playground and picnic area have not been finalized.
Q: Will the building look like a church? Will there be a belltower/crosses/signage, etc to signify that it's a church?
What makes a building look like a church is a matter of aesthetics so that's a tough one to answer definitively, but the current plans call for a traditional roof shape as well as crosses and signage (probably lighted in some fashion) to be used to identify to drivers on S. 19th that this is a church! The county regulations limit building heights at 34 feet so we are maximizing square footage while also trying to maintain an appealing roof pitch.
Q: Will there be room for Family Promise/Quilting/PNO/<insert your ministry here> in the new facility?
Another tough one to answer as there are so many needs and ministry possibilities! In general, we envision a number of multi-purpose spaces in the facility and the size of the site affords us a great deal of space for expanding ministry needs. The Open House Forums are a great place to learn more about specific ministry plans.
Q: What is the timeline? How soon might we be able to move into the new church?
While this is an exciting question to think about, we don't have a firm timeline yet. The building plans will continue to be developed and the capital campaign must do its work before we can move forward with site plan approvals, permits, financing, bids, contractors, etc.
