FaithPointe Church of the Nazarene Wants to Build New Church in South Whitehall

FaithPointe Church of the Nazarene is hoping to relocate from Allentown to Orefield Road in South Whitehall and build a new church on about 16 acres of farmland near Morgan's restaurant.

The church, which recently changed its name from First Church of the Nazarene to reflect its proposed move, hopes to build a 55,964-square-foot worship center with off-street parking and athletic facilities. 

The new church would be built in phases as financial contributions come in, said lead pastor Ray Stark. 

The first phase calls for classrooms, a worship center, a café for coffee and Internet access, offices and an indoor turf soccer field (for sports and community outreach, family movie nights, indoor Easter Egg Hunt and the like).  

"We want it to become a kind of 'Third Space' where the community and the church come to interact on a regular basis," Stark said in an email about the proposed new church.

"In fact, we’ve created a tag line that reads, 'Where faith and life come together.' That’s exactly what we are attempting to create – a place where faith [the church and its ministries] can interact with people throughout the week living their daily lives [recreation, sports outreach, café etc.]."

FaithPointe Church of the Nazarene, with its 250 congregants, is currently at 938 S. 11th St., Allentown. Stark said the church building was sold in May to Iglesia Primera de Corintios 13, a Missionary church. 

"With the neighborhood becoming more than 50 percent Hispanic, we were delighted that the ministry that began through the Church of the Nazarene would continue to reach the community in a way consistent with its changing population," he said.

First Church of the Nazarene was built in Allentown in 1931 during the Great Depression, Stark said, "and the people gave sacrificially to see the building completed...." In 1961, a parsonage was added and in 1977 a sanctuary was built and the parsonage converted to classroom and office space.

But the church had become landlocked on about an acre, surrounded by residences and a ball field, Patriots Park.

"We knew if we wanted to expand and begin some of the new ministries God has planned for our church, we could not accomplish this at our current location," Stark said.   

Since the church's congregation is spread throughout the Lehigh Valley, it began looking for land with easy access from the main roads.

"With that in mind, we received a phone call one day from a man who owned 16 acres of farmland," Stark said. "He couldn’t develop it like he would like to and he shared that he felt God [was] telling him that he needed to sell it to a church. The next day, he heard we were looking for land and contacted me. We purchased the property."

The church changed its name to FaithPointe Church of the Nazarene as part of the proposed move. "We believe this name better reflects our desire for our church to be a place 'where faith and life come together,'” Stark said.

Last Thursday, the church's application to build went before the South Whitehall planners, who tabled the matter and took it under advisement. Stark said neighbors attended, asked questions and gave feedback. The matter also will go before the township Zoning Board. 

Stark said FaithPointe Church of the Nazarene hopes to be able to get the necessary approvals to begin construction by spring or summer of 2013, with the new church opening in fall 2014. 

Construction costs are not yet available, Stark said, as the church is still in the design phase. The church plans fundraising. A Harvest on the Field is planned for 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Oct. 28 at the new site.