HOW TO GO
What: Crossroads Church Mason construction kick-off and celebration
When: 7 to 8 p.m. today, June 25
Where: 990 Reading Road, Mason
A church that serves Butler and Warren counties is planning to build a new facility for its fast-growing congregation.
Crossroads Church members and Mason dignitaries will officially kick-off construction today, June 25, for the future home of Crossroads Church Mason.
The new church will be located at 990 Reading Road.
Crossroads established its Mason-based congregation with Sunday services at Mason Middle School four years ago and now has about 1,200 members.
That number is expected to swell to 2,400 or more by the time the new Mason location opens in fall 2014, according to Chuck Moore, Crossroads’ director of multi-site.
Mason City Council voted unanimously in January to approve rezoning for a 24.79-acre property at the corner of Reading Road and Tri-Way Drive, the former home of International Paper. The company closed in 2008, but still owns the site, according to the Warren County Auditor’s Office.
The zoning vote changed the property from industrial and road service use categories to business planned unit development, allowing the church to renovate the existing 142,508-square-foot structure, as well as provide 988 parking spaces, storm water management and buffering.
The congregation has “a stellar reputation,” Vice Mayor Victor Kidd said in January.
“This is a good reminder that there are things much more important to the community than financial return,” Kidd said.
The church is “very proactive” in getting people involved with the community, Moore said in January.
“Part of what makes our calling a little different is that we tend to attract leaders who have lots of ideas and want to give back to the community,” he said. “We believe faith is action.”
Crossroads also opened a church in Florence in 2012. The church’s current main campus is located on Madison Road in Oakley.
Staff Writer Eric Schwartzberg contributed to this report.