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Barriers and Blessings: An Unexpected Opportunity

January 14, 2026

Well, that got interesting.

If you’ve been following our Campus Expansion project, you know that focus has been on the 24,000 square foot 529 Van Ness building that we signed a lease for in July 2025. Over the past several months, our leadership has been working with the team at Visioneering to design a space that would meet our ministry needs. Visioneering worked diligently to create a master plan for us that met our programming needs: a larger sanctuary, a dedicated children’s ministry area, areas for fellowship, amongst other priorities. However, the challenge from the beginning has been that very limited space in 529, and even with Visioneering’s architectural wizardry, there was very little flexibility or room for future growth.

When we presented our preliminary plans to the building owners late last year, we learned that they had certain requirements on how the building would be utilized, mostly so they could retain flexibility in the building for future tenants. However, our needs are so specific that it was looking less and less likely that that we would be able to simultaneously meet the owners’ requirements and our needs, and we had to seriously consider the possibility that the 529 expansion would simply not be able to move forward.

However, as is often the case, God surprised us and turned what felt like a barrier into a blessing. During our conversations with the owners, they graciously offered us the opportunity to lease the entire building instead.

529 Van Ness is a portion of the a larger building; a 36,000 square foot building to be exact. This meant that we would have access to 12,000 more square feet than we had planned! The additional space also comes with a 36 added parking spaces in a gated area within the complex, which further helps our parking needs!

Unfortunately, the cars are not included in this additional space.

This was a total shock to us. We had known that the additional space in the building existed, but we were under the impression that it was not available for lease. But God is so faithful, and he provided us with this opportunity that none of us could have foreseen.

We have gratefully received this blessing from the Lord, and we have signed an updated lease to officially make us the tenants of 529 and 531 Van Ness!

This is a huge answer to prayer, but would you keep praying for the next steps?

– Continued clarity and unity as we adjust our plans for the new expanded building
– The upcoming Conditional Use Permit (CUP) process with the city, which typically takes 4–6 months

Of course, a bigger space does mean a bigger price tag. The new lease commits us to $44,000 per month for the full building. While that is a large number, it is an excellent price per square foot of available space, and it would be very difficult to find another facility for a comparable price.

We are also still narrowing down estimates on the impact on the renovation costs. While we’re still early in the process and awaiting more detailed numbers, we’re currently in a position to confidently move forward with at least a partial build-out.

In March, we’ll begin a three-week Treasuring Christ teaching series, where we’ll share:

– Updated financial information
– Vision for the project
– The most current building plans-
– How we can continue pursuing generosity as a church family

This most recent chapter in the unfolding Campus Expansion story has been an unexpected one! But as exciting as the additional building space is, we are most excited at the goodness of God. The events of the past of the past month have demonstrated what we have always experienced from our God: he is more kind and more gracious than we could possibly deserve.

Thank you for praying, giving, and walking with us these past several months. We’re excited to continue sharing updates as God keeps writing the story.