The Church Council is very grateful to the many people who have compiled this booklet.

INTRODUCTION

Heart of the village
It was described as "one of the best-designed church halls" ever seen, incorporating "many of the most modern innovations found in church architecture in New Zealand." That was 47 years ago and the present church had just been constructed at 6 St Albans Avenue. The above accolade from the Rev Duncan Hercus, convenor of the Presbyterian Church worship and architecture committee of the time, recorded in the Manawatu Times on 18 January 1955, brings wry smiles to us now. St Albans must occupy the most worn-out building of any active church in New Zealand. Martin Bate, our Treasurer in the mid-nineties, described it, with gentle understatement, as "tired". Even the floorboards are wearing through in places. In all my travels as Presbyterian moderator, I certainly haven't seen a church - of any denomination - making do so well with such limited facilities as St Albans.

Space Odyssey
Foundation members - like Betty Crawford or Allan Smith - will tell you that St Albans has always struggled for space. In the baby-boom years of the fifties and early sixties, children of the overflowing Sunday School had to be accommodated in neighbours' garages. Major extensions to the church in the mid-seventies added the distinctive St Albans Avenue brick frontage, the Sunday School classroom wing on the eastern side, and the present kitchen and toilets. In the early eighties the classroom walls were removed to provide space for services which were bursting at the seams, and Tremain Hall was built to accommodate the Sunday School. Throughout the nineties we have run two morning services during the academic year to fit in our regular worshippers. In the late eighties and early nineties the Bible College and St Albans staff even worked together out of the confined area of our present offices. Now, at the beginning of the third millennium, space is even more at a premium. During term time our 10.30am service is often uncomfortably full. Sonbeams, our pre-schoolers, and their parent helpers, crowd into the back room. Space Station Al-mega children's ministry overflows Tremain Hall into classrooms at St James School. Inadequate foyer and servery space means that we struggle with welcoming, gathering, and serving morning teas, let alone providing an adequate Sunday office to expedite church communications. Church growth specialists say that churches tend to lose people once they are 80% comfortably full. With such obvious physical constraints, I'm amazed that people continue to flock to St Albans.

Heart of Hokowhitu
Clearly, the time is right for our building project. We urgently need it for our present needs - let alone to develop our future potential as a church. We have worked hard to get this far, through a far-from-easy Resource Consent process, which included a successful appeal last year to the Environment Court. There has been wide consultation - within the church, and with our neighbours - to get the best possible outcome for St Albans and the wider community. The result is a plan for a fine, integrated, multi-purpose facility, which will look handsome on our strategic corner site. St Albans is a visionary church, well known and respected for its global mission, youth and student ministry, and concern for families and the socially disadvantaged. To these historic core distinctives we are currently working hard to relate more to our local community, and to the culture of the average, unchurched Kiwi around us. We are seeing the value of employing quality staff to head up strategic ministries for families, children, youth, and young adults. The building project is not an end in itself, but a means to an end. It is designed to provide a larger and more functional home base for our church, thus enhancing our community outreach and wider mission. Our facilities will benefit from more space and more user-friendly amenities, including an auditorium, foyer, meeting rooms, kitchen, offices, storage, and multi-media and performance capabilities. It will become a community resource in its own right, putting St Albans in the heart of the Hokowhitu Village much as the church was once the centre of daily life and culture in the medieval village.

Window of Opportunity
St Albans has always been a church motivated by a mission rather than a maintenance mentality. For many years we have spent nearly a quarter of our income beyond ourselves. The building fund, therefore, pressing though it is, is not our only priority. We want to advance holistically, developing our staff and ministries in step with the growth of our facilities. Indeed, we recognise that the construction of a new building presents us with a unique window of opportunity for developing our community profile. That is why we are appealing for substantial giving to both our building fund and our ministry development. We want to walk on two feet, not just hop on one. The cost of our building project is greater than we had originally envisaged.

This is, firstly, because the Bible College has moved into its own premises in Queen Street, and has withdrawn from its earlier undertaking regarding for use of the upper storey. Secondly, it is because the terms of the Resource Consent do not allow us to use our existing buildings, but require us to build afresh on the corner site as far away from neighbours as possible. Consequently, we face the challenge of doubling our building fund, so that we can build without an excessive level of borrowing. I know this is a big ask. I feel daunted by its challenges, as do our elders and staff. Our church leadership has considered the challenges carefully, and prayerfully. They are profoundly grateful to all those who have already given generously to the building fund. They believe that, pulling together as a church, and relying on God's help, we can raise the necessary additional finance. Everyone - young and old, employed or retired, those who can give much and those who can only give a little - has a part to play. I encourage you to review personally what you can pledge, and what you can give, both now and in the longer term. Every one of you is important. Every contribution adds up. Every donation will make a difference.

[[ material from Rob Yule
Senior Minister ]]

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Over the years St Albans has sought God's guidance in its direction and major decisions. Sometimes, as when we purchased the Brent-Smith home at 339 Albert Street (our present office), we have been somewhat reluctant followers, baulking at the scale of what God was asking us to do. I well recall Stuart Sargent, one of the elders when I came to St Albans in 1987, telling me how the church council of the time felt that God was bringing them back, time and again, to purchase the property, though they were already indebted as a result of purchasing the manse not long before. We look back now and wonder how would we have managed, these last fifteen years, without our office and Tremain Hall. One prophecy which has been a lodestar to St Albans has been that of The Jewel in the Paddock. It was brought by Ken Newton, a veteran leader of the charismatic renewal movement in Australia, who visited St Albans in November 1995. Ken has the most astonishing and accurate ministry of personal prophecy of anyone I know. He described to us a picture of a jewel lying in a paddock - unnoticed, because it was covered over with dust and dirt. In time, washed by the rain, it began to gleam in the light of the sun, and was discovered. "When it is found," Ken said, "it will be just as in the early days in gold fields in Australia or in the States. When they found (treasure) then there was a rush. Everybody wanted to move that they might gain something too." The Jewel Prophecy has been widely discussed in St Albans. Gill Schaap's 'Jewel Song' is based on it. My personal view is that it is essentially a prophecy about increased visibility. Just as the jewel is washed by the rain, sparkles in the sunlight, and starts to attract people, so St Albans, over a period of time - perhaps involving cleansing, humbling, purifying - will become more visible, and people will increasingly be attracted to it. We can see signs of this beginning to happen over the last few years: The greater profile in the presbytery and in the Presbyterian Church, the extraordinary attention we received during the Resource Consent process (where we were required to consult with 130 neighbours and local businesses, as well as appear before the city council and the Environment Court) and the explosion of community contacts through our recent outreach ministries. Moving from our modest, almost hidden, present building, in the midst of its dusty, gravel carpark, to a new, high profile, two-storey multi-purpose facility on our strategic corner site on a major Palmerston North thoroughfare, will certainly contribute to an increased visibility. There is a further prophecy, vividly remembered by myself but little known in the wider church, which is also relevant to our present church situation. About five years ago in a morning service, probably in 1997, I had a Vision of a Fountain - rather like the fountain at Mission Bay in Auckland. There was a strong central jet, very high, which began to die down. There was a lull, and then a circle of outer jets around the circumference of the fountain began to rise up in place of the central jet. I remember sharing with the morning congregation what I saw, suggesting that God was going to replace the central focus of our church with a range of new ministries on the periphery of the church, impacting the wider community. Looking back with the benefit of hindsight, we can see that this prophecy anticipated the major transition we have been through as a church over the last five years. We have moved from a single-ministry focus - on one minister and the ministry of our church services - to a series of outreach ministries each impacting in significant ways on the wider community around us. I have personally found this prophecy very sustaining, particularly during the difficult period around 1998 and 1999 when we were trying to bed-in our seeker services and win support for a more outward-looking emphasis. For a while, during this lull period, it even seemed that nothing much was happening. But now the jets on the circumference are flowing strongly, and we are in touch with large numbers of unchurched pre-schoolers, children, youth, young adults and families through our flourishing outreach ministries. Perhaps what I didn't envisage would be that the ebbing of the central jet would involve me having a heart attack! To sum up these strands of guidance.
God is calling us not to be daunted by the enormity of the challenge facing us, but to press on in faith, trusting God's guidance and provision. A season of greater visibility and attractiveness, perhaps even amounting to a gold rush, lies ahead for St Albans; we must embrace this challenge, and not shrink from it. As our outreach ministries begin to flourish and bear fruit, we need a larger, contemporary, multi-purpose home base, and a multi-talented ministry team, to resource our role in our community. Faced with the daunting challenge of a building project and developing our staff team, let us work together, in response to God's call and guidance, to provide St Albans with a new home base for its mission.

[[ material from  Rob Yule
Senior Minister ]]

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Brief History
In 1955 our original church building was built and was considered most suitable and adequate at that time. Over the years the building has been extended and additional land purchased to meet changing needs. The congregation has grown in numbers and stature. Expectations and attitudes have also changed since those early days. We are all well aware of the inadequacies now evident in our present buildings. Similarly, our leadership requirements have changed and grown. It is well established in church growth research that both these factors are closely linked and have a major impact on church development. Our multiple services on Sundays are an example of a compromise we have had to make, due to inadequate facilities, which has increased the work load for staff and volunteers. To overcome the building size we expect our leadership and support teams to make their contribution twice each Sunday morning. This limits growth and is clearly not ideal. For many years the church has struggled with the physical limitations of our buildings. In the early eighties plans were drawn for a new auditorium on the St Albans Avenue frontage, but the congregation voted not to proceed. In 1989 a site development committee was established, and in due course plans were prepared for a 500-seat auditorium linking the present church and Tremain Hall. After a lengthy Resource Consent process, involving an appeal to the Environment Court and three mediation hearings, consent was finally granted in December 2001 for St Albans to proceed with a modified building proposal for a two-storey building accommodating a 325-seat auditorium, multi-media capabilities, meeting rooms, offices, foyer, kitchen and storage facilities.

The scene is set for the next step - approval from the congregation.

If we assume the strong support of the congregation for the resolutions and financial pledges in May then: 1.Borrowing and other fund raising will commence. 2.Architectural working drawings will be commissioned. 3.Upon obtaining the necessary funding, new building tenders will be called.

Following agreement to proceed, and the necessary finance, it is hoped the new building could commence over next summer and be completed early in 2003. This would provide the least disruption to our activities. We would have both Rob and Steve on staff to lead us through this period of change.

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St Albans comprises a complex, interwoven fabric of people working together to make Jesus known in Hokowhitu, Palmerston North and beyond. Our individual interests vary wildly, from mission support, outreach or small study groups to music, children and youth work. The Bible reminds us that a body has many parts, all interdependent and essential. We are all worthy in God's sight and have different contributions to make. A prime objective in this project launch is to involve everyone associated with St Albans, ensuring information is available for all to evaluate. Equally important is the provision of time for the leadership to listen to concerns and for us all to seek the Lord's guidance. Everyone reading this document is encouraged to take ownership of our joint decisions and is invited to contribute in their own way. In May we will be seeking decisions that will decide our future at St Albans. The church leadership now considers we are at a critical stage of development where our buildings are limiting our activities and growth. At the same time our need of additional paid staff has been reviewed and an increase will enable further growth and diversity of ministries to meet our Vision. To proceed we need the approval of the vast majority of the congregation and an indication of additional funding to support the decisions. We seek the involvement of everyone supportive of St Albans in any way: Present or former members, friends and the community. We see St Albans as an integral part of the Hokowhitu area and community. The building project and staff proposal will be launched on April 27, 2002, where this booklet will be presented. Speakers will comment on the issues, and questions will be answered. Participation is the objective of this meeting. Following the launch there will be a series of sermons, family and house group studies presenting relevant material for further consideration. It is important to the church council that everyone has an opportunity to ask questions, comment or present their ideas. While the church leadership totally support the proposals, we emphasise that no final decisions have been made and we sincerely seek the input and attitudes of all our members. It is hoped this consultation period and all Personal Response forms will be completed by May 22 and that we can announce the results at the congregational meeting on Sunday May 26.

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1.The New Building Proposed A single, multipurpose building to be sited close to the corner of Albert Street and St Albans Avenue, with the area adjacent to the building to be used primarily for car parking. All present buildings will be demolished or moved off site. The new building sketches and concept drawings are included at the end of this document. Notable features are the auditorium seating 325, the significantly increased space for children's ministries, office space, and potential for expansion into first floor spaces.

2. Siting of Building There are four reasons for recommending that we remain on our present site: The site has a high visibility, situated on a major road in the centre of a residential suburb. An analysis of addresses in the St Albans directory shows that the site is close to the "centre of mass" for our people. When the possibility of moving off-site has been prayerfully considered the church council has felt a strong sense of God's call to remain within the Hokowhitu community. The church council believes that moving off-site for Sunday services may be the next phase if we outgrow the church auditorium with two morning services. We could either use a larger auditorium elsewhere or plant a daughter church. Before we move into this next phase of growth, the council believes that we need to have a larger congregation and better home-base facilities for our other ministries. The Presbyterian Church in NZ still has a geographical parish structure. There would be restrictions on our relocation options if we chose to move.

The Case to Proceed
Our present church building is well past its use-by date. It was built as a temporary facility in 1955, with the intention to build a permanent church on the vacant section next door. Instead, the temporary building was enlarged over the years with largely unattractive add-ons. At the presbytery visitation last year, we were required to present a building inspection report prepared by Alpha Building Consultants. This report stated: "This building has reached a point where it is in need of serious maintenance and upgrading. Given the level of work required, demolishing the facility and rebuilding may prove a more cost effective alternative". The visitation team reported to presbytery: "St Albans has had a building programme for 20 years. The church has a well-used feel about it and must be the most austere worship centre in any city Presbyterian parish. The building report was very critical of the facilities. "We believe it is appropriate that the very minimum be spent on the church building, pending the decision to go for a new church complex." The church building is not of good quality and needs serious maintenance that may cost more than its replacement. It is outdated in design and functionality. Apart from seating capacity, it lacks areas for welcoming and fellowship and is not designed for the modern use of electronic communication. It is not meeting our needs and is inhibiting our growth and activities. Significant parts of the children's programme, a key to our future growth, have had to be located off-site for several months now, due to lack of space. Other parts of this key programme are located in less-than-satisfactory accommodation, e.g. the old creche and library. Groups such as Tot Time are inhibited from reaching their potential size by room space. The church is now frequently over 80% full at the 10.30am service. Church growth literature suggests that we begin to lose newcomers who seek churches with more spacious comfortable facilities in worship, children's programme and car parking. The acoustics and visibility levels in the church have never been particularly good, and as the services become more crowded, more people are forced into regions where sight and sound suffer. Office and administrative space are no longer adequate. Several of our ministries are inhibited by lack of storage and flexible spaces to allow planned activities The proposed new building will allow the expansion of all our activities and also the flexibility to develop new ones. The new auditorium will enable us all to worship together initially, but future growth and the flexibility of alternative meeting times may mean we again offer multiple services.

[[ material from Site Development Committee ]]

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That in order to continue with the present level of ministry, the church council recommends to the congregation that we issue a "call" to Steve Jourdain to be an Associate Minister with standard terms of call, effective from September 2002.

Further details available on request.

[[ material from Graeme Russell
Church Council Secretary ]]

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Finance Sought: Gifts, Loans, Future Offerings
These notes detail the necessity for fund raising of an additional amount to allow us to proceed with the project. There are several possible sources of capital funds, including:

• Gifts.
• Bequests.
• Grants from charitable and other institutions.
• Fund raising activities undertaken by the congregation and friends.
• Interest-free loans.
• Professional/competent assistance on the building site provided by the congregation and friends.

Bequests
Members, previous members and friends of the St Albans congregation may be considering, or may be prepared to consider, leaving a bequest to St Albans. Such a bequest could be tagged for a special purpose or, alternatively, be available for use as the church council directs. Financial support of this nature would be of great assistance, particularly if directed to this project or to the on-going operational costs of St Albans. A sample wording for a bequest is included with this booklet for the use of those who may consider this kind of support. Although bequests will not necessarily be available to St Albans at an early date, an awareness of the donor's intentions in this regard will assist considerably in the overall planning of funding and the consequent decision making that lies ahead of us. Grants from Charitable and Other Institutions Further approaches to such institutions will be made over the next few months. While we all would hope for success in this regard, no reliance should be placed upon this possible source of capital funds.

Fund Raising Activities Undertaken by Congregation and Friends
Every encouragement will be given to any group or individual that may wish to promote fund raising activities to accumulate funds for the project. Any fund raising activity of this kind should have the prior approval of the church council.

Interest-Free Loans
It is probable that some members will have fixed-term investments as part of their investment portfolio. An interest-free loan to St Albans would provide funds to be used for the project and reduce our need for other borrowing. Such loans need to be for a specified term to allow proper planning for repayment at an agreed future date. It is anticipated that interest-free loans could become a popular funding mechanism for the project. Please indicate on your Response Form the amount and term you prefer.

Professional/Competent Assistance on the Building Site provided by the Congregation and Friends
Folk with the necessary professional or technical skills, time and inclination could well make considerable savings for St Albans when the final project package is put together. Proposals for such help from both individuals and groups will be most welcome and inquiries should be directed to Mike Krausse.

The On-going Operational Cost at the Completion of the Project As discussed above, the project will inevitably result in a need to increase our general offerings for the on-going operations of St Albans. This simply means that, if the project is to proceed, each and every member or family group of the congregation will need to carefully reconsider their personal financial commitment to the on-going life of the church and its witness to the Palmerston North, district and even overseas communities. 

[[ material from Finance Committee ]]

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Brendan O'Hagan, Youth & Young Families' Pastor
The building project is appealing to the St Albans Youth Ministries ie, Rock Solid, Stage Door and Fishtank. The new facilities would:
  - Provide space to operate our programmes on site.
  - Offer room to expand our fast growing activities.

Create more options in terms of programme ideas.
Provide a more modern, attractive and functional facility in which to operate. I fully support the building project for these reasons and look forward to new facilities that would serve and accommodate our expanding youth ministries.

Steve Jourdain, Associate Minister
St Albans has the most inadequate facilities of any church with which I have ever been associated. Every week I am frustrated by a lack of facilities for one ministry or another and for storage. I have had to turn some community groups away both for services (eg: Girl Guide Parade) and to use our hall in the evenings because we haven't had the room. I am also aware of newcomers to Palmerston North who have been looking for a church to belong to, who have not stayed at St Albans due to the cramped, uncomfortable and stuffy environment for them during morning services. Church research is clear that functional aspects alone don't hold newcomers but they do discourage people from staying. When a worship area is consistently over 80 percent full when people arrive, it is a disincentive even for regulars to attend. Difficulty with parking can also turn people away. On the other hand, if a church provides more room or more services at convenient times, research suggests that the congregation will increase by 25 percent within one year. To my surprise, I experienced this even in a rural town like Dannevirke.

Graeme Russell, Church Council Secretary
We stand at the foot of a financial mountain. Do we have the faith to conquer it? Raising an extra $300,000 and selling the manse so that we can achieve our new building is a big ask. On top of this, increasing our offering income to keep Steve as our associate minister, provide a housing allowance for Rob and service a loan, is another big ask. The elders have wrestled with these matters for several months and have finally decided that we must go on in faith and recommend these things to the congregation. I am proud of my fellow elders that they have taken this step. I hope the congregation will respond. Ever since I have been at St Albans there has been talk and plans for a new building. This is the third (or is it the fourth?) proposal before St Albans' people. On two previous occasions the then congregation backed away from the mountain and we have forever suffered from poor facilities and lack of space, which has inhibited our worship, outreach and growth. Those churches in the city that have taken giant decisions and rebuilt with modern facilities have prospered. Look at Central Baptist, New Life, Cross Roads and Christian Community Church. God honours those who step out in faith. I am sure that if we agree together in harmony, God will surprise us with his providence.  We have a great ministry team in Rob, Steve and Brendan. At the present time, we are enjoying Steve's ministry as Rob fulfils his role as moderator of the national Church. We have a great asset in Steve! He is fully committed to the Lord and his mission and he is committed to St Albans, in spite of only taking the job as a fill-in for two years. He has led us into new avenues and inspired us with his enthusiasm and energy. The church council was convinced that if we are to move forward in mission we need to have the trio of Rob, Steve and Brendan. The three complement each other and work so well together. To regularise Steve's position we need to agree together to issue a call to him to be our associate minister. This is the Presbyterian way of doing things. Usually a board of nomination selects a person whom they feel will be suitable and who is willing to serve the parish and that person is endorsed by the congregation and a call issued by the presbytery. In our case, we have been blessed by Steve's ministry for 18 months and so we know what we are getting and we can, as a congregation, whole-heartily endorse a call for him to be with us permanently. We stand at the foot of a financial mountain. Bring your boots and let's go climbing together! 

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ARCHITECTS DRAWINGS 

Click on any of the following to view the drawing of:

• financial gifts and interest-free loans
   
• increased offerings to service the building loan and increased staffing.

Should you wish to make a donation, please download this MSWord form, complete and post to St Albans

SAMPLE BEQUEST WORDING
Should you wish to make a bequest for the benefit of St Albans Church, please download the following MSWord form, complete and post to St Albans.  

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