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Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Grace Ministries constructs $25 million Vision Center
Korean church on former ConAgra site could open by early October.
Fullerton Grace Ministries International Vision Center with nearly twice the square footage of the Crystal Cathedral sanctuary in Garden Grove could be ready for occupancy as early as October, said Ted Kim, director of business development for the Korean church.
The center, which will house the main sanctuary, is part of the 26-acre campus purchased in 2000 by the Korean congregation from ConAgra (formerly Hunt-Wesson Foods) at Brookhurst Road and Valencia Drive.
The new 180,000-square-foot building sits on the southwest corner of Brookhurst and Commonwealth Avenue.
Construction costs are in excess of $25 million for the 2,500-seat sanctuary, which will serve the largest congregation in west Fullerton, Kim said.
"We used some of the same architects who designed soccer stadiums in South Korea," Kim said. "And we have a space frame roof system like LAX with no columns in the middle of the sanctuary."
Membership at Grace, which began with three families in 1982 in a rented
Fullerton church, has swelled to 4,000 attending adults.
The First Evangelical Free Church of Fullerton lists more than 6,000 members
at its east Fullerton site, but meets in a smaller sanctuary.
Kim said the current Grace Miracle Center sanctuary built in 2003, which also
houses Eastside Christian junior high and high schools, will be transformed
into classrooms for both the church and the private schools.
He foresees the Vision Center as a gathering place for the community.
Indeed, the new facility – among other amenities – will have a stage large enough to accommodate Broadway-style productions.
The church will also retain its gardens, designed by founding Pastor David Kwang-Shin Kim, 73. Ted Kim said the upstairs balcony surrounded in glass will offer a stunning view of the flowers and plants.
Until additional parking accommodations are available, parishioners and guests will be shuttled on buses. Kim said the church has a parking ministry that directs traffic every Sunday so members won't park in the nearby neighborhoods.
Paul G. Han assumed the senior pastor role in 2004. There are 50 associate full-time pastors for the Fullerton congregation.
The Rev. David Kim moved back to Seoul in 2004 to train more than 200 missionaries and continue planting churches throughout the world.
Last year, Kim estimated Grace has 8,000 churches in 50 countries throughout the world.
