UUCSC Long Range Planning Notes –

In April 2003, eleven cottage meetings were held around South County focusing on the long-range planning needs of the UUCSC.

1. Feedback forms

Congregants were asked to circle the option (a or (b which they thought was best for our congregation over the next few years.

A total of 57 feedback forms were received:

[NB: One respondent checked both a) and b), two respondents didn’t check either option but made a comment*.]

Four respondents chose option a):

a. Stay where we are. (4)

Comments - Things people thought the Long Range Planning Committee should take into consideration as we explore the long term options:

• None within five years.
• In addition to staying where we are we should be still planning on buying or building our own facility in 5-10 years.
• Stay where we are for now … (move if we can afford it). I think we should explore the possibilities before deciding whether to move or not.
• *We need to define the options (financially and physical improvements), ie 1) What can be done by staying? 2) What can we get if we moved?
• *I do not have enough information to make a decision regarding options because I consider this a financial issue.

Fifty-two respondents chose option b):

b. Move, after thoroughly exploring and researching the possibilities of renting, purchasing or building a new church home. (52)

Comments - Things people thought the Long Range Planning Committee should take into consideration as we explore the long term options:

• Improve the current space – moving and adding walls etc. Involve new members and do demographic research on Orange County.
• Expansion of current present facility as we follow plan (b). Purchase rather than rent.
• I feel that, within a reasonable budget, significant space-use changes should be made in our current church to encourage short-term congregational growth.
• Expand present facilities (rent more units) until a potential finance feasibility study can be done to buy or build property.
• Add an option c) “BOTH” [ie stay where we are and move.]
• Lease for interim, purchase later.
• Do a risk assessment of each option and publish it. Carefully consider the location of a new facility compared to the current one.
• How many dollars to capital expense. Location of facility. Size of new facility. Amenities to be provided.
• Estimate growth potential – members and finances.
• Be sure to interview members re their interest and ability to participate in a building campaign.
• Need to make sure people are willing to make a financial commitment above and beyond yearly pledge.
• Because the times and economic stability are so uncertain now, I would like us to be more conservative in our planning.
• I’m conservative about money – let’s not get into a big debt.
• Move after thoroughly exploring and researching the possibilities AND RAISING THE MONEY.
• Bottom-line: Can we afford it?
• A capital fund drive soon!
• Consider using “oweat equity” to rehab or build a new space.
• Move as quickly as possible!
• Begin a capital campaign and build money for a new location. Investment possibilities?
• Prefer purchasing if at all possible. Need to have specific information as to what is available and cost before we can decide.
• I think we’ve made do with what we have but it might be time to move on.
• This church is necessary in South Orange county and we need the courage to move on. Interest rates are low on your investments. Why not invest in a church?
• We are paying way too much for rent. I would prefer to spend that money on mortgage payments. We need more space!
• Where we are is fine, but we will not be able to grow unless we move.
• We need to promote the idea among the congregation to think “long-term” and we will eventually reach our goal. We have so much potential for growth in this area. But, we need to make a leap to buying our own place so that we will have the opportunity to grow. The existing facility is only a short-term solution … we need to move!
• Make sure we plan for growth – stretching is good!
• Need to plan how to maintain the desire for growth!
• I’d like a comfortable new building that is not too extravagant. Use our money wisely.
• First choice – buy land and build. Second choice – buy an already built church.
• Buy land and build ourselves over time.
• Cost of moving twice. Finding what we need. Think of temporary.
• Buy land and build from scratch.
• I feel that by moving into a different commercial space we’re not solving any of the issues we want to solve. It is still not ours and the space would still not be adequate.
• The layout of the new facility should be an efficient use of the space to help reduce costs.
• Purchase a building which can be modified.
• I’d like to see us either buy/lease with option and existing structure such as a church, old movie theater, closed business and work with it, or buy land and build our own church.
• Buy commercial KMART: lease to own.
• Buy old church, movie theater, etc.
• Check out lease to own retail spaces of newly closed business.
• Try to stay within a ten mile radius.
• New place should be in relative close proximity to current location to prevent losing members because of transportation issues.
• Hopefully finding a place which would be an easy drive for all members.
• Location of building may be controversial. Willingness of congregation to contribute significant extra dollars? Building ourselves may take too long.
• Ushers need to encourage people to move to the middle of the rows and move to the front. Encourage regular attendees to leave space on aisles and back for visitors.

2. Questions and Comments

Congregants raised a number of questions for the Long-Range Planning committee to research. They also provided a number of comments for the committee to consider.

Questions

Impact on Membership

• What is our current average attendance?
• If we move, will there be a risk of losing some members who don’t want to move?
• Is there any information on how many members may leave during a transition to a new building?
• How do we maintain our friendliness and “personal contact” as we grow?
• How do we decide and define some small groups that will help us maintain the personal contact between people?
• How large do we want our congregation to be? What is the optimum size for our congregation?
• How big are Orange Coast and San Diego congregations?
• Is anyone in our congregation familiar with Orange Coast’s efforts in relocation?
• Is there a way to increase community awareness and recognition in our current location?

Taking on a Mortgage

• How do we ensure we don’t take on an oppressive mortgage?
• What if membership growth falters once we’ve taken on a big mortgage?
• What are the tax implications for pledges and capital campaigns?
• Aren’t we currently in debt already?

Raising a 25% down payment

• What is a capital campaign?
• How do we raise money to build?
• How do we find out whether there are people willing to put up money?
• Do we already have a building fund? Yes, the UUCSC building fund currently has approximately $50,000 in funds.
• Does the type of UUA grant depend on buying a building, renting a building or buying land?
• What do individual members need to contribute?

Finding Suitable Property

• What is the best location for our future?
• How far are people willing to drive?
• What kind of acreage would we be looking for? What size property do we need (acreage)?
• How much is land in Orange County per acre?
• What areas within South Orange County currently have available open land?
• How often do existing church’s come available for sale?
• How long do churches tend to stay on the market?
• What would be the cost of property (building) that includes parking space? (Is the average cost $140 per sq ft PLUS parking space?]
• Do we have information on recent sales (sizes, costs, building and or land, features) and what is on the market now?
• Can we locate next to accessible free parking?
• Has there been a decision on where we would be looking for a location?

Strategy and Timing

• What must we do right away?
• How can we address short term needs?
• Are we going to be here at least two years?
• Would it be possible to do the short term goals now?
• Can we have a meeting on short term solutions for the building?
• What will require other large budget items?
• Is this only LONG-term planning?
• How can we expand our current facility? How much space will we gain? What will it cost? How much time would we buy?
• If we expand what ramifications would that have on re-zoning? Could it be re-zoned?
• How fast can we move? Three years is too long!
• What are the specifics about various options (purchase/rent options, costs, specific scenarios).
• What are the different scenarios (stay, stay/expand, move to larger commercial building, buy/build) with dollar figures, and specifics as to what each scenario would include
• How do these scenarios affect our ability to retain a high quality minister?
• Which comes first, the church or the pledge?

Other issues

• Can we put a sign on top of the current building?
• Why isn’t more attention given to placing signs in good locations?
• What is the possibility of sharing space with another church facility?
• Do we have buildings/architects within our congregation?
• How does Reverend John feel about moving to a new building?
• What are the tax impacts of renting vs. owning

Comments

• We must separate problems into two groups. Short and long range.
• We have to engage in a long-term plan. We won’t be able to stay here for five years. We must deal with today’s problems too.
• We need to weigh up the price of modifying an existing building with designing a suitable new one.
• We can think about moving/growing in stages or steps.
• Ideally we would raise as much capital as possible so the mortgage isn’t too high.
• One member involved in building a church in Houston commented that they did it by selling bonds to the congregation for 10 or 20 years.
• When All Souls was falling apart we had an opportunity for this building – we took the risk.
• Building plan for Joseph’s Church in the east: They asked members to make a pledge of 1/3 each regular pledge per year.
• Another idea! We all join a church we like and take over the operation of the church.

3. Considering what makes a building suitable

Congregants discussed the current sanctuary, fellowship hall, parking, classrooms, nursery and other aspects of the building. They identified the positives and negatives of our current building, and outlined the ideal aspects of a building for UUCSC.

NB: Items in bold were mentioned more than once. The asterisks beside items indicate how many times they were listed.

Sanctuary Space

Positives:

· Good seats**

· Good visibility from pews to podium*** Raised pulpit

· Flexible space with moveable chairs****, Versatility* of room for example change chairs to have dinner

· Attractive** interior, aesthetics with curtains*, Pretty, Color scheme, candles, plants and carpet is good, Lighting** okay and practical, much more attractive, Pretty good aesthetics, Like recent improvements

· Hearing impaired system*

· Comfortable**, Cozy

· Audio has improved*, Good sound system**

· Many entrances

· Wing or alcove in sanctuary where young families and kids gather is comfy, Shape is good

· Back door to parking lot

· Storage area close to sanctuary

· Lighting adequate for reading hymnal

· Seat monitors – someone to seat guests as they come in

Sanctuary - Negatives:

· Bathrooms off sanctuary*****, noise from bathrooms, plumbing problems, water heater noise, “kitchen” door

· Too small***, problem seating late-comers, lack of expansion potential

· No space for choir** no choir “loft”*

· No windows*** No sense of nature, No natural light

· A/C noisy*** inconsistent and inadequate, Too hot/cold

· Narrow aisles and doors*

· Acoustics could be better* PA system marginal, sound system “acts up” occasionally

· Fluorescent lights*, not dedicated lighting, poor lighting – uncontrolled in front

· Expansion may not be possible due to building codes, difficult to expand and expensive

· Proximity to children, Can hear nursery and upstairs noise*

· Curtains not fire-proof

· No fire extinguisher

· Too expensive

· The pillar blocks view in one row*

· Low ceilings

· Not using the organ that we have

· Not enough hymnals

· No foyer/vestibule

· “Choir” door too visible, Janitor door too visible

· Pulpit doesn’t adjust to height of speaker

· Poor emergency exits

· Limited space at the front, Need better place for piano and performance

· Too few receptacles

· Use of duct tape

· Too few spots for wheelchairs

· Hard to see the speaker, Lack line-of-sight

· No designated place for children

· Noises from elsewhere in the building

Ideal Sanctuary:

· Outside view*, windows***** skylight, views and natural light

· Stained glass**

· Plants**

· Conducive to rites of passage (Weddings etc*), central aisle for weddings

· Spacious aisles*

· More space* more seating*, more capacity with flexibility for expansion, designed so there is additional room to grow e.g. (partitions), Seating for 500 with room to grow beyond

· Choir loft*, elevated choir seating

· Acoustic design**

· High ceiling* cathedral ceiling, vaulted ceiling

· Better sound environment, Audio-visual friendly, state of the art PA system, Better sound system to accommodate different formats

· More space up front for musical instruments and a large choir, Orchestra area, more performance area*

· Room enough so we don’t have to eat in the sanctuary, separate meeting rooms from the sanctuary, large enough social area to have functions without having to move furniture

· Better overall design – more atmosphere, open structure.

· Trees and landscaping visible from inside, outdoors inside, garden court yard

· Improved décor and aesthetics, art

· A seating arrangement that is more unified (e.g. semi-circle)

· Better view of the speaker (e.g. elevated pulpit, staggered seating) Theatre seating

· A recognizable physical presence (entire building)

· Restroom facilities

· Handicapped access

· Use back door/convenient to the parking lot as one of the entrance doors

· Bench seating for more people vs. Individual chairs for each person

· No wings (equal dimensional), More symmetrical arrangement so all can see well and entry/exit is smooth

· Built in lighting system, nicer lighting (incandescent as opposed to fluorescent)

· Built in projector and screen, the drops as needed

· Table storage nearby for functions

· Make it easy to set up chairs in Sunday format after a function

· Seat monitor

· More permanent chalice area and better décor

· Nice grand piano on wheels

· Fountain, water fall

Fellowship/Meeting Hall

Positives:

· We now have a fellowship hall (yippee!) ** *Better than before,

· Number of and access to bathrooms**

· Clean*

· Aesthetics good** (flags*), freshly painted, cheerful

· Versatile, flexible configuration

· Good size space

· Separated from sanctuary

· Good set up for early bird

· Adequate for current population

· We aren’t a church in a box

· Refrigerators

· Storage nearby

· Administrative office

· Children’s snack area

· Nicely wallpapered bathrooms

· Possible addition of adjacent units in future

Negatives:

· Traffic flow in and out of fellowship space is difficult***, too crowded* – bottleneck in the doorway** only one entrance*, not enough room*

· Bathrooms directly off fellowship space**** Bathrooms too close, bathroom visible

· “Early bird” meetings tie up the area** set-up interrupts Early Bird, Stair traffic disruptive to meetings

· No kitchen**

· No place for sitting down* not enough seating

· No natural light**

· No outside space (atrium, patio etc)*

· No flow around food area, refreshment table is hard to access (traffic jams)

· Shape of room not appropriate for meetings

· Not enough tables

· Poor lighting

· Low ceiling

· Carpet

· No audio-visual

· Not enough storage, no closed storage

· No privacy

· Under CRE

· Kids and parents snack tables are together (kids running through)

· Not aesthetic

Ideal Fellowship Hall:

· Kitchen (stove etc)******* large sinks, Kitchen close by***, Partially separate kitchen

· Separate from sanctuary and CRE, Separate meeting hall with open space between meeting hall and the rest of the facility, separate areas for meetings, separate Adult Education space, Spacious (with partitions)*, Larger meeting hall, Room to grow or a large space that could be partitioned (would facilitate rentals)

· Audio-visual friendly, Integrated audio-visual*

· Storage nearby**storage for tables etc.

· Multiple stall bathrooms, Centralized lavatory* Bathrooms down the hall

· Comfortable seating*

· Natural light, windows

· Bulletin board – information center, More display area for groups

· Outside area, Patio* (landscaped, gazebo, seating), Entrance directly to outside

· Good acoustics, Good acoustics for music and soundproofing, Sound system

· Stage*

· Area for sit-down dinners for 500+

· Good flow through serving refreshments

· Multiple