From the Ground Up: Calvary Christian Assembly of God

Owner/developer: Calvary Christian Assembly of God
General contractor: Keltners Construction & Excavating LLC
Architect: Wells & Scaletty LLC
Engineers: Wells & Scaletty LLC, structural, civil, and mechanical, electrical and plumbing
Size: 24,000 square feet
Estimated cost: $4 million
Lender: O’Bannon Banking Co. (Buffalo)
Estimated completion: April 2022
Project description: Calvary Christian Assembly of God is expanding its footprint to keep pace with its congregants, according to Caryn McDonnell, the church’s business administrator and wife of pastor Floyd McDonnell. “We’re growing, even in pandemic world,” she said. The church started building its new sanctuary before COVID-19 hit, but McDonnell said the pandemic slowed progress by about a year, while also raising the price of the project. She said the church considered moving into Springfield city limits to accommodate its growth, but ultimately decided not to. “We decided to stay rural,” she said, in part because of what she called the beauty of the 6.75-acre site the church sits on, which is set amid farmland and trees. McDonnell said the church started with 12 members in 2012 and in nine years has grown to about 280 – too many for the current sanctuary, which holds 180, so there are two Sunday services to accommodate congregants. The new building is expected to seat up to 400, McDonnell said.