Project "Audacious Adventure"

The title of today's post was coined by Craig Janssen. It is what he has been calling the Crosspointe project.

Several years ago, Crosspointe purchased land in Carrollton intending to build a church there. The thing is there are already a plethora of churches in the area. So, Crosspointe sold the land at a profit and decided to do something completely different. After all, if there are already an awful lot of existing buildings with pews and steeples, wouldn't it be cool to build an asset that the community doesn't already have?

Just north of Crosspointe's current location is a planned community. Like most mixed-use developments, the idea is that you can live, work and play all in the same neighborhood. The success of these neighborhoods hinges on their ability to deliver a sense of community. Considering that creating community is something that Crosspointe excels at, there is an intersection of goals.

David Wahlstedt, Craig Janssen, Wayne Stoltenberg and other members of our team worked with Shanks Architects to develop a concept for a center to be co-developed for use by the community and the church. The space is designed for conferences, concerts, cultural and community events. The project would not be a church, but the church would be able to meet there on Sundays.

Today, the team makes the pitch to the developer. Crosspointe would build the theatre space, lobby, parking and classrooms, and ask for the developer to provide the land and build the amphitheatre. Though it sounds like an "audacious" request, the plan is actually financially viable and revenue-generating. A wonderful idea, but still an audacious request.

I can't wait to hear the results....

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UPDATE: I had lunch today with the Audacious Adventure team right after the meeting. The pitch ended with unexpected results. The developer didn't look at the gorgeous flythrough or glossy handouts. Instead he gave a firm, no.

He did, however, give the team advice. Essentially, we need to get in the door before any amenities have been built. He mentioned other options in the area and provided some helpful information.

It was a bit deflating, but not completely discouraging.

The US Marines have a motto: Improvise, adapt, overcome. It's a great motto to live by, but mostly it is a great phrase for today.