A New Home in Midtown

Since Four Oaks Midtown was planted more than a decade ago, we have sought to worship deeply, connect with one another, submit to scripture, and revel in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We’ve done those things in Midtown. We’ve been present in this particular part of Tallahassee. Over the years, God has been gracious to grow our congregation into a healthy and flourishing body of hundreds; single and married, young and old, new in Christ and faithfully maturing. We have rejoiced in the birth of one another’s children, laughed together while eating at picnics, prayed for each another in and through trials, and marveled at the mercy of God to keep us believing year after year.

Even as all of this was taking shape, we prayed for and desired a long-term home. Our simple, hidden, corner of Tallahassee on 8th Avenue has been a blessing in countless ways. However, its drawbacks have led us to pursue permanence. In 2023, the church purchased approximately two acres of land in the heart of Midtown, between Thomasville Road and Gadsden Street. Our goal with this property is to establish a more permanent place of worship that will serve generations to come, decades into the future. We are making headway with design, site plan, cost estimates, and plodding forward toward a beautiful new place to call home. As needs and updates occur, you’ll find them here. Thanks for taking time to look around. 

Building Fund Goal

$2,000,000

*This potential site plan is subject to change

Property Location

 

We have a few goals for the first phase of this project.

  1. Move our church home to a place of permanence and visibility along Thomasville Road

  2. Build a new chapel capable of seating 300-350 people

  3. Create welcoming and spacious children’s space capable of serving 100 children per service

  4. Create appealing outdoor spaces which invite fellowship and community connection

Benefits of a Building and Permanent Home

  1. Gathering for Our Church

    As a body of believers, Scripture instructs us to gather and support each other in love. Furthermore, it calls us a spiritual family. Though it is the people who make the family, having a home is a vital way we live out our shared life together. A permanent home will allow us to care for our current needs more effectively and invite others to join us.

  2. Establish Deep Roots in the Community

    Developing a long-term home communicates permanence and investment in the local community in which we worship. We seek to continue to be rooted deeply in Midtown and a permanent space gives us greater opportunity to reach others and be a good neighbor.

  3. Stability for the Future

    Church buildings ought to signal what they stand on which is the timeless, steadfast faithfulness of Jesus. Despite changing times, traditions, and cultures, the church will remain a steadfast beacon of truth, beauty, and goodness in the world.

  4. Financial Stewardship

    Over the long term, it is clear that owning is a far more cost-effective solution. Our investment now will free up future generations of the church to dedicate a greater share of resources to the ministry of the Gospel.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • We think the project will be completed in phases:

    2023 - Purchase land and move offices

    2024 - Finalize site plan and begin fundraising

    2025 - Build chapel and sufficient children’s ministry space, landscape design

    2026 - Move all church operations to new property

    2027 and beyond - Build community hall, children’s ministry addition.

  • Our goal for a new building is motivated by a desire for stability and permanence, as well as the increasing need to provide ministry space. Our congregation has experienced consistent growth in recent years, and on Sunday mornings, we often find ourselves bursting at the seams. This seam-bursting means our ministry is, unfortunately, often dictated by limited space rather than vision or best practice for discipleship. Especially in children’s ministry we are unable to offer a full discipleship program for current or new families.

  • The current church building on East 8th Avenue has been a special place where lives have been committed to Christ and people have grown closer together in fellowship with the Lord and each other. While we continue to call that place our home, the property does present clear challenges. The location, and specifically zoning, of the current church create significant hurdles for us to expand in the future. Reasonable expansion would mean a loss of green space, an expensive pond, costly renovations to an extremely worn building, traffic problems and more.

  • We continue to work with a variety of partners, including builders, architects, lenders, and city planners to identify the best way to use this property. The current estimate is that it will cost approximately $4.5 million to demolish and/or renovate and build a new chapel. Our hope is to raise a considerable portion of the funds necessary to build and use conservative financing to cover the balance.

  • We are still early in the design phase, but we expect that once finished the final buildings will include roughly 12,000 square feet of space – more than 2x our current location. That will give Four Oaks Midtown ample space for both now and the future.

    We desire for it have intentional and clear design. A site plan of set apart spaces. Chapel. Schoolhouse. Gathering, etc. As design moves forward, we will share images and video.

  • Right now, there are a few contiguous parcels that each include various buildings and businesses. This includes an oil change business, a law firm, and a hair salon, as well as a few other businesses. The Four Oaks Midtown offices are also currently located in one of the existing buildings. The primary buildings were built in the early 1900s which gives character but also some challenges for long-term upkeep. We are in regular communication with the business owners and are committed to ensuring a smooth transition when it’s time to move forward.

  • As part of our broader Four Oaks community, we have guidance and support from our congregations in Killearn and East, as well as insight from our church planting network, the Harbor Network. We’ve also received gifts from a few folks outside the Four Oaks Midtown community, which is both exciting and encouraging.

  • In the coming months, we expect to share more about plans and the financial needs of property development. Suffice it to say, it will take a concerted effort and considerable resources to meet our needs. To that end, we are asking that you consider a gift toward our building fund. Our commitment to you is to keep the church family informed at every step of the way as we eagerly look forward to sharing updates and designs.