Bates Area Civic Association

Some Bates Area residents might wish to read this Washington Post story on Third Street Church of God, located near the Bates Area.

Click on the link to read the entire Washington Post article.

For D.C.’s Third Street Church of God, expanding, renovating wasn’t easy
BY HAMIL R. HARRIS
July 4 at 10:05 PM

The Rev. Cheryl Sanders was all smiles as she led a procession in celebration of the Third Street Church of God’s gleaming new $2 million annex and renovated sanctuary on a recent Sunday afternoon.

It was a special moment for the Harvard-trained pastor. The dedication ceremony culminated a 12-year battle to expand the church, at 1204 Third St. NW, and its historic mission.

“We are gathered to dedicate and set apart this building, which God has prepared us to build for the glory of God,” Sanders, the church’s senior pastor, said of the project. Her voice boomed inside the sanctuary, in which hundreds of current and former members and neighborhood residents were gathered after a $1 million renovation.

For years, it felt as if the church would never get to this day. Opposition from neighbors and local officials turned what at first seemed like a simple expansion plan into a struggle over the church’s efforts to enlarge its mission in a residential neighborhood.

“They don’t teach you this in divinity school,” Sanders said of the journey, adding that to finish the project church leaders also dealt with five general contractors, four banks and three architects. “I didn’t take a class on development . . . or gentrification.”

Disagreements over church-related development are not uncommon in Washington. Many established churches have had tense relations with neighbors over parking, construction and other issues. A number of District congregations, including Metropolitan Baptist Church and Scriptural Cathedral, have moved to the Maryland suburbs to pursue their missions in less restrictive settings.