Presbyterian Church in Columbia, Maryland
Worship Every Sunday at 10:30 a.m.

July Ministry Expansion Plan Update

We continue to move forward, albeit slowly and steadily, with the ministry expansion plan.  As the architects warned us before we embarked on this endeavor a little over a year ago: this is the longest part of the process with the least evidence of progress.  However, rest assured that progress is being made.

On June 22nd a public meeting was held here in the sanctuary as part of the process of obtaining permission from the county for the conditional use of our property.  A number of church members attended the meeting as well as a few of our closest neighbors.  A few questions were asked and issues raised—mostly concerning the effects of storm water runoff from our property to Amherst Avenue.  We assured our neighbors that we plan to do whatever we can to mitigate the problem.

Prior to the meeting Pastor Scott and Ministry Expansion Committee chair Bob Jenkins went door-to-door to our closest neighbors to share our plans and all reacted positively to our proposed changes—especially the plan to redirect church traffic from and to Shaker Drive and away from Amherst Avenue.

In the last week we have submitted our paperwork to the Department of Planning and Zoning and are waiting to hear when the hearing will be scheduled.  Once the hearing has been scheduled signs will be posted with the details.

In the meantime the committee continues to work out other aspects of the plan—particularly an issue with the water main and its ability to handle the addition of the sprinkler system we will be required to install.

At the same time our Finance committee is hard at work collecting the information necessary to make a recommendation to the session and congregation in regards to the loan we will need to secure to cover the cost of the plan.  It is likely a congregational meeting to consider said loan will be called sometime in the next few months.

If you have any questions or concerns about the plan please don’t hesitate to contact Pastor Scott or Bob Jenkins.

As always, the Ministry Expansion committee, the Finance Committee, the session, and all involved in the process greatly appreciate your prayers.