Meet Vibrant Church
Vibrant Church is located in Columbus, Mississippi. Founded in 1984 by Ron Delgado, Ron's son Jason became the Lead Pastor in 2009. They are part of the ARC (Association of Related Churches) church planting network.
This church does incredible work in a small community. They give away 10% of their annual budget every year. Their focus on reaching people and serving the community is a big part of their growth. In just five years, Jason led the church from 300 to 3,500 in weekend attendance.
This massive growth meant it was time to expand the facility.
Looking for Help
Vibrant, like many churches, hired an architectural firm experienced in churches and ministries. These firms can be valuable. But, as Vibrant quickly learned, the initial proposed solution can create major problems:
- The building design didn't accomplish current and future ministry needs.
- No bank would finance the proposed building.
- A building costing $400 per square foot was too expensive to meet a reasonable budget (note: average cost for a church building in this area should be under $200 per square foot).
- The Church paid $786,000 for an expensive and inadequate design (projected cost was $12m). The architect was unwilling to redesign.
- The building only had 700 seats in the main auditorium, which required multiple services. There was also inadequate family and children’s ministry space.
It was time for a change. That's when Ministry Solutions stepped in.
A Better Plan for a Big Vision
The project started with a Free Analysis and a Clear Path Forward. The Clear Path Forward is a fact-gathering process culminating with 2-3 days onsite to help the church gain clarity and develop a detailed plan forward. This analysis clarified the previous issues with the project.
As a result, the next steps became clear:
- Simplify the design so it meets all of the needs and stays within budget. Changing the building structure cut the cost in half while still meeting long-term needs.
- Contract with the right teams and subcontractors with a focus on local labor. The previous firm used out-of-town labor. Out-of-town contractors know that this job is unlikely to generate future business, so they typically overcharge up to 25% for services.
- Negotiate better financing because the project budget came down, reducing potential risk for banks.
Church leaders don't build buildings often, so they don't always understand what can change to save money while still meeting their needs. For example, the proposed building had 46 corners and four changes in roof height. This means custom steel pieces throughout the whole structure. Simple design methods achieve the same appearance and save millions of dollars.
This example is just one of many from this project. Pastors are busy enough with their current responsibilities. They don't have time to learn the ins and outs of building projects. Instead, they ought to have experts in their corner advocating for the vision, budget, and needs. That's what Ministry Solutions does for churches like Vibrant Church.
Funding the project is a major component of the work. In this case, Greg Morris of Generis was an invaluable asset for fundraising and financing support. After Ministry Solutions’ recommended and implemented changes, four banks competed to finance the project. As a result, Vibrant Church received an outstanding financial package.
The Ministry Solution
Fast-growing churches haven't led many building projects. Having a team like Ministry Solutions means working with experts who can carry the logistics, strategy, negotiations and communication that are part of multi-million-dollar development projects.
Ministry Solutions provided a wide range of services for Vibrant Church, including:
With the right building and solid budget plan in place, Vibrant Church is poised to reach more people in Columbus, Mississippi, and beyond.
