WalMart-to-Church Conversion Getting Another Look

The Ridge Community Church’s second major attempt to make a permanent home in Greenfield will get a comprehensive look by the city’s Planning Commission on Tuesday.

Pastor Mark Weigt and other church representatives are expected to outline plans to bring a church with a rapidly growing popularity and congregation to one of the city’s busiest commercial corridors, while at the same time taking a significantly valued property — or at least a portion of it — off the city’s tax rolls.

The RCC has an accepted offer to purchase the , and wants to convert a majority of the 110,000-square-foot building into space used for church-based functions.

The offer is contingent on the City of Greenfield agreeing to rezone the land from regional business district to mixed use, and changing the city’s land use plan from planned business to planned mixed use.

In April, prior to the RCC’s proposal first being heard by the Planning Commission, Community Development Director Chuck Erickson to Greenfield Patch. He said at that time the desire for that location would be for high-end businesses, and said there are concerns about the city losing out on property taxes.

The WalMart property has an assessed value of $7.2 million, with the city’s portion of the property tax more than $50,000. According to Weigt, the church would use 61,000-square-feet of the building and then try to lease the balance to a commercial or retail tenant. The balance of the property not used by the church would not be tax exempt, thus lessening the blow felt by the city’s tax rolls.

It’s a philosophical dilemma “between wanting to sell now to a willing and stable buyer, or gambling (and) waiting for the retail market to improve allowing for commercial use of the entire property,” according to comments in the Planning Commission packet.

The Planning Commission is expected to approve both the comprehensive land use plan change and the rezoning Tuesday and forward the matter to the Common Council, where on July 17, public hearings regarding both meetings are expected to take place.

This is not the first try for Weigt and the RCC to move to Greenfield. Last year, , but the at the last minute.

Tueday’s is 6:30 p.m. in the Common Council chambers, Rm. 100, of .