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LCF Leadership’s Vision for Expansion of Our Facility
Following is the evaluation and vision that the Trustee’s presented to the ETF (Expansion Task Force) in 2006. We recognize that some of these items are things that “would be nice to have” but may not be feasible to have as part of the finished product due to practicalities, financial limitations, etc.
Who are we? ♦ Ministry of LCF – In order to properly assess the facility needs of LCF, it is important to evaluate the vision and direction for LCF. The items listed below are things which help define who we are and how we believe God has positioned us to minister to people. ♦ Families – LCF has had a consistent ministry to families. Over 50% of our church is composed of children or youth. Consistently LCF has ministered to children, youth, and at times, a large number of young adults. Future facilities will need to take into consideration the needs of children & youth so we can not only continue to meet the needs of these age groups, but expand our influence. ♦ Teaching Ministry – The leadership at LCF is committed to providing solid teaching both in preaching and in teaching. Facilities will need to accommodate areas for various types of classes to be held. In addition to classroom facilities, it would be desirable to expand our current library to include study helps such as commentaries and possibly provide for a study area. ♦ Music & Drama – We believe God wants us to use our musical and drama talents and abilities to communicate the message of the gospel. Our facilities would need auditorium facilities such as stage, sound, & lighting to accommodate these needs. ♦ Informal – LCF is an informal church. Our wish is to communicate that one does not need to have a certain type of clothes or level of sophistication to attend our services or to be a part of us. Our facility should communicate this as well. It should be aesthetically pleasing, comfortable, and “homey”; a comfortable place to hang out for churched and unchurched people. The property should have a nice campus look both inside the facility and the grounds outside as well. It does not need a grand design/cathedral appearance, but nice and functional. ♦ Expansion – The leadership of LCF visualizes the future expansion of our ministry taking place in the form of church plants. We wish to teach/train people and send them out to begin new ministries where they are needed. Our vision would not necessarily be to grow a church beyond 250 in attendance at this location. |
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Job Description for LCF Expansion Task Force April 2006
Main purpose - The purpose of the LCF Expansion Task Force (ETF) is to manage the expansion project for LCF from start to completion ensuring that it is consistent with the vision expressed by the trustees. Throughout the project the ETF will facilitate good communication with the trustees and the congregation.
Composition – The ETF will consist of four members. At least one of the Trustees will serve ex-officio on the ETF. The other three members will be appointed by the Trustees and chosen on the basis of their construction, management, communication, business, and finance skills.
Specific duties: 1. Manage the expansion project for LCF from start to completion ensuring that it is consistent with the vision expressed by the trustees. The ETF may delegate responsibilities as it sees necessary or request additional help from the trustees in delegating tasks. 2. Ensure consistent communication flow between the ETF and Trustees and ETF and congregation on issues, needs, concerns, recommendations, questions, progress, etc., related to the expansion project. To aid in facilitating communication, perhaps we could have an ETF page on the LCF website that is updated at least once a month or maybe even a blog site. 3. Submit proposals to the trustees to process major aspects of the practical implementation of the vision. 4. Consult with professionals and provide the Trustees with a recommendation on how best to utilize the property including whether to build a new building or add on to the existing structure (it may be helpful to review prior expansion committee minutes and documents). 5. Secure the services of an architect to design building. 6. Secure the services of a contractor to give leadership to the building project. October 2006 ETF Update by Richard Troyer, Chairman of the ETF
The expansion task force has been working on determining what the best way would be to expand our facilities. At this point, we are leaning towards building all new. We have been meeting with architects and builders to get their opinions and possible costs. Depending on how things go, we could begin building within 1 year and could possibly be in a building in 2 years. There will be a lot of decisions to make and opportunities for you to contribute as we proceed. Be thinking of the areas you would like input on or have abilities that could be used in a building project as we will be coming to the congregation for specific commitments. If you have questions, input or just want to know a bit more about what is going on with the expansion process, just ask anyone on the ETF (Phyllis Swartz, Levi Miller, Jeff Helmuth or myself).
March 2007 ETF Update
The ETF (Expansion Task Force) has met with two additional architects and have received proposals from both of them. We are in the process of evaluating the costs associated with each one. If we choose to use one of these architects, then the next step will be to pay them a retainer fee and they in turn will begin drawings on a new building. We have reviewed with both architects what we would like to see incorporated in a new building. After their drawing, we can make changes and revisions to the plan and give opportunity for the church congregation to be involved with input.
The other area we are doing work on is financing. Keith is doing some preliminary research into loan amounts, interest rates and LCF’s ability to get and pay a loan. We are looking at spending around $750,000,00 on this project. With building costs in the $80 to $100 per square foot range, this would give us around a 6,500 square foot building (with $100,000.00 spent on site work). We would ideally like to build between 7,500 to 10,000 square feet. In order for this to happen we will need the congregation to support this with a fundraising project for additional costs and also with labor in areas that would help us to keep the costs down. Be thinking of ways to help. As always if you have any questions, or input, we invite you to talk to any member of the ETF.
Have you seen the blueprints for the new building project yet?
They are posted on the wall in the foyer. Please take a few minutes and look over them. Then let someone on the Expansion Task Force know what you think. Note: These building plans are still in the making and are subject to change.
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LCF Expansion Process |
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On April 13, 2006, the LCF Trustees met to discuss expansion of our facilities. The Trustees reviewed a document drafted by the leadership team (i.e. pastors and elders) that articulated the leadership team's vision for expansion. This document (noted on the right) was revised to reflect Trustee's input and will serve as a guiding document for the Expansion Task Force (ETF). The Trustees are excited about expansion possibilities but are also aware that a tremendous amount of energy and work will be required to make expansion a reality. Please keep the Trustees and the ETF in your prayers during the coming months. |
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What do we need?
♦ Classrooms – We are in need of both children and adult classrooms. The solution of bringing in modulars was intended to be a temporary solution for providing additional classrooms. In order to continue to meet the needs of our children and also have adequate classroom space for adults, we believe we need to provide classroom space which is all in one building or can be reached without going outside. ♦ Foyer – Our foyer is very limited in the amount of people it can facilitate. In particular the hallway to the kitchen is very narrow, but overall the foyer is a very congested area. This is especially noticeable on Sundays where we exceed 100 people which is happening more frequently. When meals or special events happen where food is served, the foyer becomes very congested. We believe this congestion is a significant negative for our visitors and guests. In general Americans like to have good personal space. We believe having a facility with a large foyer or “hanging out” area is important to the ministry at LCF. A large open area (similar to Mechanicsburg Christian Fellowship or the church where Phil & Lucy got married) with sofas and chairs for fellowship as well as a place to serve coffee would be great. ♦ Auditorium – Our current auditorium accommodates approximately 100 people. The elders’ team has agreed that we would like a sanctuary which accommodates 250 people. ♦ Good Acoustics – It would be desirable for the auditorium to be designed to optimize good sound reproduction (acoustics). ♦ Stage – The stage should be designed to work well for multiple purposes; speaking, drama, music, etc. ♦ Lighting – Stage lighting would be needed to accommodate the needs of drama in particular. ♦ Video capable – We would like to plan for future video capability which would allow the service to be displayed in the foyer, nurseries, overflow space, etc. This would allow people to stay in touch with the service especially when kids need attended to. It would also allow for overflow of auditorium space if necessary. ♦ Baptismal provisions – we would like to be able to easily accommodate baptism by immersion. ♦ We would like to see rooms off the sides of stage that could double as S.S. rooms and be used for drama performances. ♦ We would like to have flexible seating. This would allow us to only set up as many chairs as necessary - so that we could “grow” into our larger auditorium without feeling “lost” in it. ♦ Restrooms – Our current restrooms have been improved significantly over the last year, but we are still in need of better restrooms with more space and better accessibility. ♦ Aesthetics – The desire is to not sacrifice aesthetics completely for function. We would like to have an attractive facility. A beautiful worship environment is a glaring missing element in many modern church plans. ♦ Nursery space – Current nursery space has not been adequate to accommodate the amount of young children. Additional space is necessary to provide for young children in the play nursery as well as the infant nursery with a separate sleeping area is desired. The nurseries need to facilitate the ability to see and hear what is happening in the main auditorium. A small bathroom or at least a sink would be helpful to have in the nursery area. ♦ Kitchen Area – The lack of typical kitchen facilities has been a problem for many of our events which require food preparation. If possible it would be good to have two ovens, a large island workspace, several sinks, and a serving/bar window. ♦ Multi-purpose Room – We would like to have a multi-purpose room - to the extent possible. This would be a room that would be separate from the auditorium and could be used for the following purposes: fellowship meals, youth activities, Children’s Church, God’s Creative Kids, sports activities, wedding receptions, overflow space, etc. ♦ Children’s Church – A room is needed to provide for children’s church to meet. This room would need to be large enough to accommodate 50-75 children. (Note: This could be covered by the multi-purpose room.) ♦ Offices – We would like to see two rooms specifically designated for office space. One that would be a general church/secretary office. The other would be a pastor’s office/study that would be suitable for private counseling. ♦ Library – It would good to have a significant library where people can check out books, study using study helps like commentaries, etc. It seems this would supplement a teaching ministry in a significant way. This area should also be a good hanging out area with couch(s), comfy chairs and table with chairs. ♦ Storage – We need to have sufficient places to store things. We are currently lacking in places to put tables, chairs, props, etc. ♦ Youth Room – We would like to have a place for the youth to call their own which would be designed/decorated with youth in mind. ♦ Total Campus Design - We would like to have some thought put into the overall campus design of the facilities and outdoor area in a way that would link things together in a creative and useful way. Depending on space available the following items are things which could be considered: Kids play area, patio, athletic fields, pond (for baptisms), park-like hanging out area. |
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ETF FAQ's
What is an ETF? ETF stands for Expansion Task Force. The main purpose of the ETF is to manage the expansion project for LCF from start to completion ensuring that it is consistent with the vision expressed by the trustees. Throughout the project the ETF will facilitate good communication with the trustees and the congregation.
How was the ETF composed? The ETF consists of four members -- all appointed by the Trustees. A member of the Trustees serves ex-officio on the ETF while the other three members were chosen on the basis of their construction, management, communication, business, and finance skills.
What are the main responsibilities of the ETF? In brief, the ETF is responsible to manage the expansion project for LCF from start to completion delegating responsibilities as needed; the ETF is also asked to ensure consistent communication flow between the ETF and Trustees and ETF and congregation on issues, needs, concerns, recommendations, questions, progress, etc., related to the expansion project. (The ETF job description can be viewed below.)
How can I assist the ETF? Prayer is the most important way you can assist the ETF as they begin their responsibilities. As we move forward, your input and investment of time will also be needed.
Why “Task Force” rather than “Committee?” The term “task force” was chosen on purpose. It implies focus and movement. The definition of “task force” is, “A temporary grouping of individuals and resources for the accomplishment of a specific objective.”
Who are the ETF members? Richard Troyer (chair), Jeff Helmuth, Levi Miller and Phyllis Swartz. |
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Notes Below… What do we need? Expansion Task Force (ETF) Job Description ETF FAQ’s ETF Updates |
