5 Colonial Church at Heritage SCOLONIAL CHURCH at HERITAGE
Friends in the Family of Faith
The Rev. Cynthia L.J. Shepherd, Pastor
April 16, 2001
To: The Members of the Chanhassen City Council Working Group.
SQUARE
From' Phil Shepherd, Chair of Building Committee
Colonial Church at Heritage Square located on Great Plains Boulevard
in the historic "old St. Hubert's" church building.
A Bit of History:
We began worshiping in the above mentioned facility on the last Sunday in January, 1989 and have
been there now for a little over 12 years, paying the City of Chanhassen a total of $70,300. in rent for
that time period.
We began with a few and now number more than 100 members who are local residents. As a result
of this continuing growth, for over two years, we have been searching for a viable church property
where we can continue to grow and serve the families of Chanhassen. Recently, we b6gan preliminary
discussions with St. Hubert's Catholic Church in Chanhassen concerning the possibility of buying the
old historic building from them. These discussions have led us to a number of concerns in purchasing
this ! 15 year old building.
Our Concerns: -. ~'
.
The building itself needs a lot of work. Electrical, plumbing, and structural issues are present, as
well as inadequate bathrooms, classrooms, youth and child care facilities. Some costs will have to
be expended to determine the extent of improvements needed.
.
The adjacent parking lot belongs to the City of Chanhassen. Without some sort of long term
agreement with the City for the use of the parking lot, the building in question becomes a stranded,
unusable property.
.
The land immediately surrounding old St. Hubert's is inadequate for any expansion to deal with
structural problems such as needed bathrooms, offices, classrooms and youth facilities.
The 'Historic Square' concept with the historic Village Hall out in front of the church building is
problematic in the sense that its future, and intended public use are not clear.
.
The plans for development of the strip of land formerly occupied by Pauly's Bar, etc. could have
significant impact on our decision to purchase the old St. Hubert's building. For example: if that
strip of land was slated for use as a site for elderly 'independent living' apartments, or low income
housing, then obviously the parking lot would no longer be available for church functions.
P.O. Box: 1056 - 7801 Great Plains Blvd. - Chanhassen, MN 55317 - (952) 949-0570
An Evangelical Christian Church - Member of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches
--Page Two--
Items numbered two through five pertain to the City of Chanhassen's intentions, and plans for
the future of this area of town that would impact the continuing use of 'the old St. Hubert's building'
as a church. Before we could purchase the said property all of these issues would need to be
resolved.
Our Proposal:
Colonial Church at Heritage Square proposes to: (1.)purchase a portion of the land in front of, or
to the west of the 'Old St. Hubert's' church building, (for the purpose of future expansion), from the
City of Chanhassen, and (2.)secure a long term lease of the city parking lot adjacent to the church.
If this general proposal was accepted, and approved in principle by the City of Chanhassen, we
as a congregation, would then enlist the services of an architectural/engineering firm, experienced in
historic renovations, to survey the current building, and design an overall site plan; for restoration of'
the current structure and the stages for new construction.
We would then submit these plans to the City for consultation and approval. Our next step would
be an offer to purchase the building we now worship in, from St. Hubert's Catholic Church.
We wish to thank the City Council for their time and attention to this matter. We Understand that
these issues are complex and difficult. We have looked at other communities, but we love
Chanhassen. Many of our members are from here. Some of our elderly members like to walk to
church.
..
We really want to stay in Chanhassen in the old St. Hubert's building, but we need to partner
with the City and St. Hubert's to make it happen. We offer for your consideration, and believe
personally that a healthy, growing church in the heart of a downtown suburban area, in a well
maintained historic building is an asset to a community in many ways that are real, but hard to
measure. We thank you again for considering our proposal.
Sincerely,
Phil Shepherd, ~
Chair of the Building Committee
Colonial Church at Heritage Square
ce: Father Steve Ulrick,
St. Hubert's Catholic Church
Drawing ,A"
Drawing. "'a.s is". basedupon,',the,.
City'S' 'Map #86-1,1;A
Parking Lot
-',:OldVillage Hall"
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