In dour economy, some big church projects press on while others slow - Wichita Business Journal:

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The $2.8 million project will add five a three-level playland area and a new back entrancd and coffee kiosk to the church at 21st Street North and K-96 It also will expand an elaborate puppetg theater that church leaders say is amonb amenities that have helped push NewSpring’sd average attendance to abou 3,300. “We want kids to come and totallhy be engaged when theywalk in,” says Children’ss Pastor Dan Kubish. “Our competitiomn isn’t another church. It’se and McDonald’s.” It’s among a few majore projects bylocal churches. has brokebn ground on a $5.5 million expansio n that will revampits sanctuary. And St. has its own $1.
9 millionn project under way. But those jobs come amid an downturm that could cast clouds overa church’s balance sheet. They may be a finapl wave of work beforea lull, say contractords and architects. Ben vice president for business developmentat , says the two churc h jobs his firm is working on now “havw been percolating for a while.” “What we haven’ty seen are brand new church They don’t seem to be considering anything new,” he Dan Wilson, lead design architect for , says “s smart church is going to be cautious in time like this — very cautious.
” But for the need to expand may neveer be greater than in times like these, some leadersa say. It’s not uncommon for attendance to get a boost durint adown economy. “Bad economies drive a lot of peopldeinto churches. That’s when people make decisionz to make room in their lives for saysBilly Poore, executivse pastor for NewSpring. Giving, No Matter What Whether the financialxs keep pace with the larger attendance is anopen question, however. At , whicgh has a $350,000 playground and landscaping projecftunder way, “attendance has been on an says business administrator Tom Kluge. He says givinyg this year has been on parwith 2008.
whose firm designed the First Evangelicalk Free project and the project at FirstMennonite Brethren, says a largs share of church giving is supported by a small number of the congregation, a figuree that holds up in tough times. But some churchesz still are pulling back. Paul principal for , says church work that at one time accountexd for about half the projects in his officw now makes up no more than 15 And churches that are moving forward are doing so Inone case, a church that had been planningt to build 10 new classrooms is now willintg to make do with just six.
“Times are just tighteningh up and the giving from the congregatiob is quite diminished from where it had been a year and a half he says. Poore, of says the church saw firsthand how the economyy canpinch giving. He says it took until 2005 for church revenud toreach pre-9/11 levels. “I think it goes into the psychologu — just like people don’t buy new cars or new If they feel prettyy confident about thefuture ..., things go pretty well. When that gets that influences giving.” But rapid attendance growth can take the stinh out ofa recession. NewSpring’s attendance has nearlg doubled intwo years.
Givinb so far this year is up by Still, Poore says, “Yoju have to step out there and have faithwhen you’re doing some of thes things,” he says.