The Gathering church, with a location at 2105 McCausland Avenue, is planning a new church on McCausland Avenue south of Manchester, just south of the Walgreens store.
According to the church’s website, the new sanctuary is planned to be 6,900 square feet, seating about 550 people, roughly double the size of the current McCausland site.
Walgreens has given the church permission to build an access off McCausland big enough for two-way traffic. There is also an entry from Manchester Road at Noonan Avenue planned.
The current concept plans for more than 200 parking spaces, giving the church better than a 3:1 ratio (people:spaces), which surpasses the city code for parking.
The church’s current McCausland space will not be sold, the church says. The plan is to maintain the existing McCausland site ‘as the sacred space it is while perhaps re-purposing the building to help further our mission and vision.’
See more information at The Gathering.
The current space will be used for weddings and potentially moving the church office into the space.
The Gathering has been doing quite a bit of Gathering. Wow. $$
When a church congregation takes on such a tremendous task, it is not a move made lightly or because of ego. I know from personal experience that it is done at great personal commitment and sacrifice by the people of the church and by their leadership. I admire them for remaining in their neighborhood, where they are meeting needs, and I hope the community will come alongside them as they move forward with this undertaking. To The Gathering…..Blessings on you….may God continue to open hearts and doors for you, and use you in a mighty way!
It’s worth noting that the congregation voted nearly unanimously to approve the plan for this new church which will solve problems of parking, handicap accessibility, and a number of other issues with the current building (which was constructed in 1919). There are multiple service times at locations. I would encourage anyone with concerns to step out of their comfort zone and visit to see how this church is moving in our city.
I have been a member of The Gathering for over seven years. The church came to this decision and location over the course of several years with a lot of prayer, intention, and input from its members. The church was running out of space and wanted to create a place within the St. Louis city limit for new people to worship. I am proud of being a member of this church. We are a church who welcomes feedback and does not shy away from tough issues. I encourage anyone to come to a worship service. It’s a great place!
A better use for this challenging location would a homeless shelter for Larry Rice and his guys…
I am confused by the location mentioned…Walgreens isn’t anywhere near McCausland or Manchester. It is on the corner of Big Bend and Clayton….
Lamira – There is also Walgreens at Manchester and McCausland just east of Maplewood.
Of course! DUH!!
Regarding the comments that are critical of this development, are you concerned about the development plan itself or the fact that it is a church? I absolutely share concerns about responsible development and parking lots. It is replacing a used car lot, though, and will actually have less asphalt than the current development. The parking lot is designed to have green spaces, too.
I would also appreciate an answer to Kyle’s question.
Lord have mercy…….
Just what we don’t need. More asphalt and concrete.
Somebody’s ego…
Televangelists and megachurches have certainly given the appearance, and possibly indicate the reality, of ego in church leadership. This plan; which includes a modest, functional building as emphasized by the lead pastor; is aimed at accommodating the growing congregation that the current building cannot hold. As this thread indicates, it is not a great location. It sits behind an aging Walgreens and apartment buildings from the 1960s on two sides, and there are train tracks on a third side. I think this is an indication of a very practical decision where ego is not a motivating force.
I saw they demolished Larry Lampert’s taco shack that was on that spot and wondered what was going in there. Pretty poor location for a church IMO.
If it makes the area look better than it looks now and they keep the parking lot clean it should be great addition to the area.
What are they going to do with the current church building?
According to the church website, “The current McCausland space will not be sold, nor will elements that currently exist at McCausland be moved to this new location. The intent will be to maintain our existing McCausland site as the sacred space it is while perhaps re-purposing the building to help further our mission and vision.”
What a waste of space.