Although having full Sunday School classes is a dream for some churches, for Fairfax's Church of the Apostles, it's become a burden. Several programs, such as the Mothers of Preschoolers and the Great Dates program where parents can leave their children at the church on Saturday night while they go out, have had waiting lists because there's no more space at the church to accommodate everyone.
"The critical thing is the practical concern of ministry space, and not being able to do the things we want to do," said church member Tony Rossell.
Because of the growing need for space, the Church of the Apostles intends to move to a new location and build a church campus that will address the needs to its current members and the surrounding community. The new location, at the junction of Braddock Road and Fairfax County Parkway, is a 42-acre site that will have six structures totaling over 100,000 square feet once the project is completed.
The move itself won't occur for another few years, as the church is still in the middle of its three-year capital campaign. So far, it has raised around $2 million of the $12 million needed for the project. Once adequate funding is available, the church will establish a timetable for the move.
"We felt that God was telling us to relocate to a new campus," said Rev. David Harper, senior pastor.
Church of the Apostles began considering a move five years ago, when members gathered at a church leadership retreat. The church, which has been at its Pickett Road location since the early 1970s, had already added more classroom space in 1989. Sunday attendance is close to 700 for its two services.
But in order to develop its programs, particularly its worship arts and drama ministry, church leaders decided to explore the idea of creating a new church campus. They looked at about 24 properties before settling on a 10-acre tract on Braddock Road. The 32-acre farm adjacent to the property then became available , and the church purchased that property too. Because of the zoning laws of that area, the church can use up to 21 acres of its 42-acre land.
"We're not just moving to a new building because we're tired of this one. ...We believe that a new building will give us new opportunities," Harper said.
BEFORE the church bought the properties, they consulted the congregation, the majority of whom agreed. The vote to buy the farm occurred within the past year and a half.
"We believed that this was where God was leading us, and the vote was even better than it was" to buy the 10-acre tract, Harper said. "I think that many people can see that the space here is maxed out."
For Ray Milograno, church member and chairman of the facilities committee, the problems were with the current church's parking and building capabilities.
"There just wasn't enough space," Milograno said.
The plan to move to the Braddock Road location will take place in several phases. The first phase will be the construction of 32,000 square foot fellowship hall that will host services as well as events. The building auditorium will be constructed to have adequate acoustics and lighting capabilities, yet have the capacity to hold dinners and meetings. The hall will also have some classroom and office space.
"We needed our gathering space to be multi-purpose," Harper said.
CHURCH OF THE APOSTLES has been working with Kerns Groups Architects on the design of the campus. The schematic part of the design process is completed, and a final design is still being worked out. In addition to the fellowship hall, the church members hopes to have an industrial-sized kitchen, a playing field adjacent to church buildings that the local community could use, a separate chapel, and a life center/gym.
"They wanted to have a building that looked like a church," said Brian Frickie, principal of the firm and project manager of the church's plan.
Because most of the land was part of a horse farm previously, the church and Frickie wanted to create a space reminiscent of farmland. The buildings will have a farmstead theme, with gable roofs and a combination of siding material and masonry common to farms in Fairfax County.
"We were really ambitious in trying to get a feel and look that would be appropriate for a rural area," Frickie said.
While the final designs are being worked out, the church needs to submit a final site plan to the county for review and approval. The next phase would then be design development, followed by construction documentation. After that, the church can apply for a building permit.
And all the while, the congregation will be busy with fundraising projects like a March auction and dinner, a cookbook sale, and grant applications. They also hope to sell their current property, with proceeds going towards the new location.
"We really have to work hard at this, but we have to look up to God ... for the provision. Frankly, it's really a place of waiting, looking and trusting," Harper said.