Construction set to begin on new Spring Grove church, community center – Northwest Herald

More than 75 Spring Grove residents and LifeSpring Community Church congregants celebrated Sunday the approval of a new development set to bring a church building, retail space and a community center to Route 173 at Siedschlag Road.

The project will be completed in phases with site clearing and building pad preparation starting this fall, a 12-page narrative of the project shared by the developer said. Construction on the church building and playground is to follow in the spring.

"When I heard we were putting up a new church, I was almost in disbelief," Garett McInnis, a member of LifeSpring, said to the dozens gathered at the site Sunday for a groundbreaking ceremony. "It's really cool to see where this church is at now and seeing how much it has grown."

Church members raised millions of dollars to fund the project, which will include indoor basketball, fitness, dance and gymnastics facilities in the 23,450-square-foot community center, said Tom Hinks, whose employer, TCH Development Group, is leading the work, and according to the documents Hinks provided. The community center will be open to the public.

The plan also includes an outdoor playground, an open-air pavilion and accessible bathrooms available for park users and occasional church activity, according to the narrative provided by Hinks.

Hinks also is organizing a group of Christian investors to buy a subdivided portion from the full 21.5-acre property where the retail component of the project will be located. It could include up to 24,200 square feet of retail, according to the narrative.

While the church will retain ownership of the rest of the property, a property owners' association will be responsible for running the community center and overseeing the building uses, according to the narrative.

Certain retail uses will be prohibited, including liquor stores, strip clubs, vaping or marijuana dispensaries and video gaming, according to the narrative. Desired tenants include a breakfast or lunch restaurant, coffee shop, bookstore, ice cream parlor, bicycle shop or bakery.

Work on the retail buildings is starting in 2022 at the earliest and the community center will start construction in 2023 at the earliest.

LifeSpring was founded in 2010, and its proposal to develop a new location and community center at 1154 Route 173 has been on the table since 2018.

"There has been a tremendous amount of work and effort and blood and tears put into this project," Hinks said.

But not everyone was supportive of the project moving forward when Spring Grove's Board of Trustees approved it in a split vote earlier this month. Trustees Bob McMahon and Lloyd Simonson voted against both motions to approve the plans. Each motion passed, 4-2, according to board meeting minutes.

The property originally had been zoned for commercial use, and a handful of residents, including several from the Breezy Lawns neighborhood, voiced opposition just before the board votes.

Some of their concerns was that nearby property owners would see all of the potentially negative impacts like increased traffic and noise, but the church wouldn't be contributing to the property tax base because it could be eligible for a property tax exemption, board meeting minutes indicate. The business entity will be responsible for paying the taxes on the land it owns, Hinks said.

Other detractors saw an issue with the number of variances to the Spring Grove zoning code the project requires, according to board meeting minutes, as well as worries about noise and light pollution. In total, there were 14 requests for variances to or departures from the zoning code, according to the narrative.

Church leaders said they think they have taken steps to clarify how the property will be used that abated the concerns, including by promising outdoor events will take place only during the daytime and the property managers will work to limit emitted light from the property while still keeping the area safe.

"We worked together to find a solution," Trustee Pat Mazzanti said in an interview. "The neighbors that objected to this don't want anything built here. We worked to reduce the commercial space while still maintaining some tax revenue."

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Construction set to begin on new Spring Grove church, community center - Northwest Herald