Grace Church Expects Spring Opening in Downtown Anderson

Grace Church of Anderson should be open for worship in the Spring of 2019.

Located in the building which has been home to the State Theater and Anderson Community Theater (in recent years renamed Alverson Community Theater), Grace has received approval for the design from the city and is currently developing drawings with LS3P Associates of Greenville. 

“We have a floor plan, and they are working on the drawings of the exterior,” said Jeff Randolph, business operations director for Grace.   

Randolph said the church is planning to select a contractor within the “next couple of weeks.”

The church has submitted a plan for the interior reconstruction/demolition and hope to have a permit to begin the work by October. 

Construction is expected to be completed and the church open downtown by Spring of 2019.

Average weekly attendance at Grace Church of Anderson, including students and children, is around 450. The church currently meets on Sundays at North Pointe Elementary School on S.C. 81 North.

Randolph said the new downtown location would allow for activities in the building seven days a week. 

The decision to locate downtown is part of the church’s strategy across their nine campuses in the Upstate. Grace has downtown campuses in Greenville and Greer, and typically looks for buildings to renovate rather than tackling new construction. Their Powdersville campus is a rare except to this approach. 

“We feel like we can be a positive influence and have a positive impact downtown, not just for our members but for the entire community,” Randolph said. “We want to impact the local community through life change. We are big on building community, surrounding anyone who shows up with others who can impact their lives and care for them.” 

“Our buildings are just tools to help us to do ministry, not just our members but to the local community. We are looking forward to being in a permanent facility in downtown Anderson.” 

Upon completion, the downtown Anderson Campus will seat between 400-425, which will require multiple services at launch.

Grace’s strategy is to keep the size of services small at all their locations as they grow, to help foster community. The ideal size of a service is 325, he said, and Grace has 19 services across it’s nine locations to maintain the intimacy of a smaller church.

Grace averages approximately 8,000 each Sunday at their sites across the Upstate.