After months of meetings with representatives of 14 different groups within our church, architects Don and Laurie Greer presented the Draft Master Plan for our church’s growth to the Future Team on March 11.  Attendees at the meeting then discussed the next steps to continue the process of planning DSUMC growth over the next 25 years.

            Included in the plan are a much larger sanctuary, new classrooms, a new Youth Building, a major addition to classroom spaces and a central prayer area centered around the labyrinth. Improved access to the facilities, with much more parking space, guides traffic in a smooth flow around the property. 

            Although this draft plan is not “cast in stone”, it does provide the basis for a Building Committee to begin its work. That committee was expected to be formed in late March when the Administrative Council meets as a Charge Conference. 

            Our engineering leader, James McCann, reported that he and others had met with Dripping Springs city leaders, and will be submitting a required Planned Development Agreement for the city’s approval as soon as it can be completed. 

            Fine tuning the Master Plan will continue for some time, and suggestions from the congregation are encouraged. Final sanctuary size, green areas, location of church school rooms and Weekday Ministries rooms, possible playground areas and several other elements are still to be worked out. How to divide this major plan into workable phases will be discussed further. But all attendees at the Future Team meeting agreed that the plan formed an excellent basis for moving forward.

            As the Building Committee is formed and architects and engineers develop plans further, we will keep the congregation informed through additional articles in the newsletter, bulletin board postings and Sunday morning announcements. Questions and suggestions placed in the box at the Welcoming Center will be acknowledged and answered.