Lutheran facility sold to evangelical church

The pink Central Avenue church passes from Redeemer Lutheran Church to Gateway Christian Center.

ST. PETERSBURG - The block-long Redeemer Lutheran Church property on Central Avenue soon will become the new home of a thriving evangelical congregation.

The sprawling pink building at 4355 Central Ave., put on the market early this year for $1.2-million, is being sold to Gateway Christian Center.

The closing is expected to take place on Nov. 11.

The new owner, which hopes to occupy the church by Christmas, is paying a little less than $1-million for the facility.

Brighton Preparatory School, a 19-year-old institution, rents part of the property and still has more than seven years remaining on its lease.

Negotiations concerning the school, which has been at Redeemer for nine years, delayed the sale.

"We had everything in line, everything in place and basically put it on hold to work out something with the school ... rather than lose the building," said the Rev. Joe Van Koevering, pastor of Gateway Christian Center.

The Rev. R.M. "Buz" Van Horne, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, with which Redeemer merged in June, said the congregation had to take a reduction in the sale price because of the Brighton lease.

The past few months have not been easy, said Faith Smith, co-director of the 28-student school.

"It's been a very difficult and trying time for us. You can't just move a school. There's a lot to consider," she said, adding that Brighton has 71/2 years left on its lease.

Van Koevering says his church is growing in numbers and programs and could use the space.

"It's a logistical situation that we have to deal with, which we were trying to avoid all along, but since they are going to stay, we are going to coexist for however long it takes. ... They didn't want to be bought out. If it was me that had that lease, I'd do the same thing. It is sort of playing the cards they have. We have an understanding that we're going forward in good faith," Van Koevering said.

"We are hopeful that a year or two will give us ample time to secure another place for them."

Brighton occupies about 4,000 to 5,000 square feet of church property, using the upper floor classrooms and a first floor office, Van Koevering said.

The school also uses a small playground, which his church hopes to upgrade, he said.

The property became available in May when the decades-old Redeemer Lutheran Church closed because of declining membership.

The congregation merged with Trinity Lutheran, 401 Fifth St. N, in June.

Van Horne, head of the newly joined congregations, says members have not made a final decision about how to spend the money from the Redeemer sale.

"The finance committee and the church council of Redeemer have drawn up some recommendations," he said, adding that members will make a final decision on Nov. 16.

For now, the church is thinking of giving a tithe to the Florida-Bahamas Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Some money also could go to a North Carolina camp once attended by Redeemer children.

Church members also are considering starting a new ministry with the money, Van Horne said.

The unification of the two congregations is going well, he said.

Sunday, the church will adopt a new constitution. Recently, he added, members held a garage sale, in conjunction with its Oktoberfest, to sell excess furniture, kitchenware and other items.

"We had 13 coffee pots between the two churches," Van Horne said.

He added that former Redeemer members have "healthy mixed feelings" about parting with their old church, "realizing that the world moves on. That while a chapter is closing, there could be some exciting possibilities for us too."

Gateway Christian Center, now located at 3900 Fifth Ave. N, is looking forward to moving into its new home, Van Koevering said.

The church, which is affiliated with the Foursquare Gospel denomination in California, has more than 300 members.

In April, it organized a mass baptism off Gulfport Beach and in 2002 held a large revival in Childs Park.

"We have a lot of outreaches, a lot of ministry efforts in the heart of the city. We didn't want to move even a mile north. Our congregation is ethnically mixed," Van Koevering said.

"When you look at our church, you see St. Petersburg. We like that. We think that is something that is needed in our city. We want to see that continue and thrive and to do that, we need to stay in the heart of the city.

"What better place than Central Avenue, which is the dividing line between north and south?"

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