Commerce, church meet

in new Salem building

By JOHN FORTMEYER
CNNW publisher
   SALEM — The shiny new four-story building on Broadway Street Northeast has none of the traditional trappings of a church building — no cross, baptistry, altars and the like. It intentionally looks like a commercial or retail center even though it is newly constructed and operated by adjacent Salem Alliance Church.
   In fact, to gain local approval to build Broadway Commons on the formerly city-owned property in an urban renewal zone, the church agreed to make retail part of the complex. It was, acknowledges Robb Childs, the church’s executive director, a depature from the norm.
   “It was thought, that’s a bit weird for the church,” he said. “But we felt like God would have us do something a little different.”
   Thus, a project in the planning for several years, and under actual construction since June 2009, has become reality, he says, in God’s timing and with His guidance. At 47,000 square feet, the $11 million Broadway Commons opened last month as an attractive space for church activities, but also as a place where the larger community is welcomed. Or, as Childs quotes Associate Pastor John Stumbo, Broadway Commons is “a place where church, commerce and community come together for the common good.”
   From the start, construction was done with sensitivity to environmental concerns and the building is certified for peak energy efficiency.
   The retail activity takes the form of Broadway Coffeehouse, an inviting ground-level coffee and pastry house designed for comfort.
Community services in the building will include:
  •Salem Free Medical Clinic, serving the uninsured and underinsured;
  •Salem Pastoral Counseling Center, a 30-year-old agency whose eight therapists work closely with about 10 faith-based organizations in the mid-Willamette Valley;
  •Life Center, a variety of inexpensive educational classes provided by the church for area residents.
   Much of the fourth floor is devoted to a church-operated prayer center, The Upper Room. With commanding vistas of downtown, the State Capitol and surrounding hills, the center will operate seven days per week.
   The remaining space is for leased professional office space and for 14 meeting rooms, accommodating both large and small groups. There also is a new outdoor plaza with a 150-seat amphitheater.
    For more information, go to salemalliance.org and click on “Broadway Commons,” or phone 503-581-2129.