In today’s topsy-turvy real estate market, churches are experiencing their own set of problems. In the heyday of the mid-2000s, many churches expanded their campuses, as the number of people in the congregations swelled. Some bought existing church buildings because their membership space demands grew. Others built, while still others did both. The 2,000-seat megachurches thrived.
But like many corporations and organizations, churches are feeling the pinch of the Great Recession. With unemployment increasing to levels not seen in decades, out-of-work church goers are unable to sustain previous levels of giving. These churches are finding a need to consolidate campuses and sell off once needed property to maintain a core of activity and to stave off lenders. There are some churches where the property has limited alternate-use options, and, hence, the value of church buildings is doubly hurt in a down economy. Conversions to alternate uses can be very costly.
The Faith Communities Today study performed by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research in 2005 applies the term megachurch to Protestant Christian congregations having an estimated minimum of 2,000 attendees each week, although some churches report weekly attendance as high as 20,000. The development and growth of megachurches was a nationwide and worldwide phenomenon, but was strongest in California and the Sunbelt.
Typically, megachurches are housed in relatively new facilities with large sanctuaries that contain hundreds of square feet and provide tiered, theater-style seating for at least 2,000 worshipers and were equipped with state-of-the-art audio/video systems. These structures typically also included extensive office space, ministry rooms, meeting rooms, Sunday-school classrooms, bookstores, and activity/family life centers having full-sized gymnasiums, exercise rooms with aerobic and weight training equipment, racquetball/handball courts, and men’s and women’s locker rooms with showers. Large food service facilities with full commercial kitchens were also common. Many churches operated schools with varying grade levels, in some cases ranging from pre-kindergarten to a 4-year high school.
At present, there are new manifestations of the megachurch phenomenon. In addition to adding weekend services to accommodate the increased parishioner interest, some churches have developed satellite broadcast over several states. Worshipers who attend these satellite locations receive the same teaching as the main service attendees. Churches also increased the use of overflow rooms and other gathering spaces outside the main sanctuary. Many created off-campus satellites or multiple sites under a single identity, single budget, and one senior leader. As a trend, this had been a relatively recent phenomenon, with the number of satellites started in recent years doubling the number that had begun in the previous 15 years.
In addition to the rising level of satellite creation, the rate at which megachurches started new churches increased from 68 percent in 2000 to 77 percent in 2008. Churches with satellites had been more likely than others to plant new churches. In 2009, the percentages of churches that had planted new churches were 84 percent for churches with satellites and 74 percent for those without.
But until the economy gains a new foothold, employment increases, and society’s disposable income escalates, churches will continue to struggle economically.
— J. Denis Gathman and Gary K. DeClark work in the Chicago office of Integra Realty Resources.