Eyes on expansion

The Rev. John Huffman, pastor of St. Andrew’s Church, envisions the

future. And it’s young.

Huffman is leading an effort to develop almost 40,000 square feet

of new space on the church’s 4-acre campus in what could be a $20

million effort. A new youth and family center and an underground

parking garage that would add 150 new spaces are in the works.

For Huffman, who has been at the church since 1978, the plans are

driven by a need to minister to younger people and families in the

area.

But not all residents of the neighborhood see the church’s

renovation plans as a plus. Opponents worry that the church is

getting too big. The Planning Commission last week fielded those

concerns at a vocal public hearing. To renovate, commissioners must

approve a zoning change and a general plan agreement.

Meanwhile, signs have been posted in some neighbors’ yards with

messages on them, imploring passersby to not support the church’s

growth.

Huffman spoke with the Pilot’s Ryan Carter about aspects of the

renovation.

Why is this modernization needed?

We are wedged between the high school and the junior high, and

although people who come here are not exclusively kids from the two

schools, much of those are our primary density in the youth ministry.

We feel a ministry responsibility to this community, and we’re

trying to have a facility that matches the need and ministry needs

for the next two or three decades. It’s what I call building the

future.

We should have done this in the early ‘80s ... but we didn’t know

how to do it right.

What is your vision for modernization of the church?

The shoe has already told the foot of St. Andrew’s how large it

can get.

When I came here in 1978, it was a 4,500-member church. We

whittled the roles down to about 3,000 and built them back up to

about 4,500 to 4,700. About 85 of our people die every year.

Our desire is to reach younger families and also have a ministry

of youth.

I just think it will be a better-quality ministry to youth and

young families. We do not see this as increasing the number of cars

on the facility.

There may be some growth in the youth ministry. A lot of these

kids will be coming on skateboards and bicycles after school, from

the junior high. And we’re convinced that probably the most dangerous

time for youth today is between 3 and 6 in the afternoon. In fact, I

read a statistic this week that the time that kids are most

vulnerable to experimenting with marijuana is 4:20 p.m., after

school, when their parents are at work, and the students are not

involved in sports or some other activity.

Have you expanded in the past?

We spent about $180,000 on an architect plan to build down and up,

and then, when we got to the City Council, the neighbors were so

concerned about this that we went back to the original plan to put

the sanctuary here on the corner and basically start all over again.

Everything you see here, except for two buildings, were all done in

the early 1980s.

We’re hoping to tear down the last two buildings that remain, to

build this family and youth center and replace the fellowship center

with a building that’s up to code. It won’t particularly be a larger

facility but one that’s more soundproof, and will architecturally

fit. So, basically the campus will have been completely rebuilt. In

my view, it’s more similar to what many of our neighbors are doing

when they remodel their homes, and a lot of that is going on in this

community. It’s a remodel of St. Andrew’s.

We have no thought of going to other pieces of land. Were not

trying to get real big. We’re trying to provide a ministry for the

next 20 or 30 years comparable to the ministry this church has had

for the last half-century.

How are you working to incorporate neighbors’ concerns into your

plan?

We’ve been in conversations with them the last several years. We

have listened to them. To the most extent, we are on a friendly

basis. Of those opposed to our building in the late 1970s and early

1980s, many of them are attending our church now. Even two or three

of the people opposed today frequently attend the church.

The ones that say that St. Andrew’s is simply too big, there’s no

way you can negotiate on that because so many of the homes in the

community, they are being remodeled. They expand, and that’s

basically what we’re doing.

The big area of conversation and compromise could be on the

parking. So many of neighbors are concerned that people will not use

underground parking. And we’re prepared to provide monitors to

channel people into the underground parking.

If there could be an arrangement in which we didn’t have to have

parking, that would solve one of the biggest of the neighbors’

concerns, the underground parking, and the safety and use of it.

One recent letter to the editor of the Pilot referred to the

church as a “guest.” What did you think of that?

I read that. I’d say we are all guests in this community. The

church was here before most of the houses were built. It’s not like

the church came in and imposed itself on the community.

I’d say we’re are all members of the neighborhood together.

Anything else you want to add?

I guess the only thing I would add is that there have been some

comments that I made a comment back in the early 1980s, that the

church was maxed-out. But what I said was that when ten homes were

torn down on Clay Street behind us, we would not expand on the other

side of Clay Street. And we have not. Even back then we were talking

about a youth and family center.

Ultimately, what I’m saying is that what’s driving us is the youth

and family center. In terms of square footage, it is an expansion,

but we’re not expanding in terms of the clientele, unless people are

attracted to the ministry.