Updated Temple Construction Progress Report

[james]

As many of you who follow my blog are aware, I update a report tracking the progress of temple construction. Here is my latest report of what's going on. Comments are welcome.


Temple Construction Progress Update (current as of 2/26/17)

Current Temple Status: 155 operating; 4 scheduled for dedication; 8 under construction; 2 groundbreakings scheduled; 1 scheduled for rededication; 2 undergoing renovation; 2 renovations scheduled; 8 announced. NOTE: In addition to the two groundbreakings already scheduled this year, the chances are very good that we will see several others also have a groundbreaking in 2017.



Dedication scheduled:

156. Paris France Temple: Open house tickets available beginning Monday February 27, 2017; dedication scheduled for Sunday May 21, 2017.

157. Tucson Arizona Temple: Desert landscaping progressing; exterior architectural details gilded; installing interior art glass and millwork; dedication scheduled for Sunday August 13, 2017.

158. Meridian Idaho Temple: Interior painting and millwork underway; dedication scheduled for Sunday November 19, 2017.

159. Cedar City Utah Temple: Installing glass; hanging drywall on interior; dedication scheduled for Sunday December 10, 2017.



Under Construction:

160. Rome Italy Temple: Interior work progressing; completion anticipated sometime between early-to -mid 2018.

161. Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple: Applying waterproofing membrane to exterior walls; setting rebar; roughing in plumbing; completion anticipated sometime between early-to-mid 2018.

162. Barranquilla Colombia Temple: Concrete walls poured for steeple; attaching waterproofing membrane to exterior walls; completion anticipated sometime during mid-2018.

163. Concepcion Chile Temple: Exterior cladding going up on north wall; framing the interior walls; completion anticipated sometime during mid-to-late 2018.

164. Durban South Africa Temple: Laying rebar for temple floor slab; installing utility conduits; walls rising for missionary house facility; aloe plants added at entrance; completion anticipated sometime during mid-to-late 2018.

165. Fortaleza Brazil Temple: Parapet poured; some scaffolding coming down; preparing to pour tower base; completion anticipated sometime during early 2019.

166. Lisbon Portugal Temple: Excavation underway for temple; structural framing going up for meetinghouse; completion anticipated sometime during early 2019.



Construction pending:

167. Winnipeg Manitoba Temple: Groundbreaking held Saturday December 3, 2016; awaiting commencement of full-scale operations; construction might commence in April or May; if so, completion anticipated sometime during early 2019.



Groundbreaking Scheduled:

168. Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple: Preparing for groundbreaking; environmental license issued in November 2016; groundbreaking scheduled for Saturday March 4, 2017; barring any delays, completion anticipated sometime during late 2019.

169. Arequipa Peru Temple: Preparing for groundbreaking; erecting construction barrier; clearing and leveling site; groundbreaking scheduled for Saturday March 4, 2017; completion anticipated sometime during late 2019.



Rededication Scheduled:

8. Idaho Falls Idaho Temple: Closed for renovation; open house tickets available beginning Monday April 3, 2017; rededication scheduled for Sunday June 4, 2017.



Undergoing Renovation:

20. Jordan River Utah Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication anticipated sometime between early-and-mid 2018.

41. Frankfurt Germany Temple: Closed for renovation; some exterior stone removed; foundation exposed; old meetinghouse razed; rededication anticipated sometime between early-and mid-2018.



Renovation Scheduled:

13. Oakland California Temple: Scheduled to close for renovation in February 2018; rededication anticipated sometime during mid-to-late 2019.

16. Washington D. C. Temple: Scheduled to close for renovation in March 2018; rededication anticipated sometime during early-to-mid 2020.



Announced:

170. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Approval and construction preparation phase; site announcement and groundbreaking anticipated sometime during 2017 (more likely sooner than later).

171. Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple: Planning and design phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: According to member reports, a potential site has been identified but has yet to be confirmed.

172. Bangkok Thailand Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: Some reports have indicated that a Church office building may be redesigned and renovated as a multi-purpose building that will not only continue to house Church offices but also a meetinghouse in addition to a temple.

173. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: Even though this was the last of the four temples that was announced most recently, and in spite of the fact that an official site has not yet been announced, the announced name for this second temple in Lima seems to indicate that it will be constructed somewhere in the Los Olivos District. For that reason, it seems appropriate to put this temple ahead of the others.

174. Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

175. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

176. Belem Brazil Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

177. Urdaneta Philippines Temple: Stalled in planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: Even though this temple is technically ahead of the temples listed above in terms of its status, because it is unclear why progress has been stalled or how long those delays might last, we could see any or all of the temples above have their constructions commence before anything gets resolved with this one.



NOTE: Given how much progress we have seen with temples recently, it is not hard to believe that we will see many more temples announced in the near future. There have been reports of several cities that have already had a site purchased already: Managua Nicaragua, Port Moresby Papua New Guinea, Bentonville Arkansas, and Missoula Montana. As the apostles travel, they sometimes have felt impressed to propose a temple for the areas they visit. Such temples have been proposed in New Delhi India (in June 1992 by Elder Neal A. Maxwell); Vilnius Lithuania (in May 1993 by Elder M. Russell Ballard); Nairobi Kenya (in February 1998 by President Gordon B. Hinckley); Maracaibo Venezuela (in August 1999 by President Hinckley); Singapore (in January 2000 by President Hinckley); for the Southwest Salt Lake Valley (in October 2005 by President Hinckley; NOTE: While some contend that this temple announcement has already happened, verifiable sources widely available prove otherwise); Managua Nicaragua (in January 2012 by then-Elder Russell M. Nelson; the fact that it has not only been publicly proposed but has had a site purchased for it makes it very likely); Missoula Montana (someone in 2014 by Elder David A. Bednar; while the report of this proposal has yet to be verified, the fact that there has been a purchase of a temple site seems to indicate that it is a most imminent possibility); and for the Kasai Region in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (in February 2016 by Elder Neil L. Andersen). I have heard many reports of several more temple sites being procured, but the nature of those reports are such that they have yet to be verified.



Key:

Bolded numbers and text denote temples whose numbers already exists (for renovations), or is certain due to a scheduled dedication, as well as information that is certain, such as dedication or groundbreaking dates.

Italicized numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on the order in which future dedications and groundbreakings are scheduled.

Underlined numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on progress towards planning, approval, and groundbreaking.

Red text denotes changes from the last posted temple progress report.

[ldspsygenius]

So do we not know why the temple in the Philippines has been delayed so long? Is there a precedent for deciding not to build a temple or shifting the location of one already announced.

[james]

The only information I have is that the Urdaneta Phillipines Temple is stalled in the planning and approval phase. The specifics are not known. But when such delays have occurred in the past, it is generally due to two reasons: 1. Local opposition stalls things. 2. The government is requesting, for whatever reason, that the temple design be redone or the site be rezoned. And yes, there is a precedent for deciding not to build a temple or shifting the location of one already announced. A prime example is the Hartford Connecticut Temple. In October 1992, President Gordon B. Hinckley, who was then First Counselor in the First Presidency to President Ezra Taft Benson, announced that the Church planned to build a temple in Hartford Connecticut. Three years later, President Hinckley, now as Church President, noted in the priesthood session of general conference that plans for that temple had not been able to progress, and that after consideration and prayer, the Church was rescinding that announcement and instead planning to build two temples in Boston Massachusetts and White Plains New York. Interestingly, plans for the White Plains New York Temple were later scrapped in favor of building one in Manhattan. And then, less than 20 years later, President Monson announced again that a temple would be built in Hartford. That temple has now been dedicated. So the Church has several options when a temple is stalled. They can either find an entirely different location, purchase a new site in the same city, or scrap the plans altogether. But a delay of almost seven years is not uncommon for any temple. I wouldn't give up on Urdaneta just yet. Time will tell what will happen there. I'm sure the Church is evaluating the reasons for the delay in getting started there, and that a decision will be made at some point as to what should happen for that city. Does that help? An updated report on temple construction will be coming in just a minute.

[james]

I have decided, due to formatting issues, to just post a link by which anyone can access my latest report. Let me know what you think. Thanks. 

Temple Construction Progress.docx (20.23 KB)

[james]

Attached is the latest version of my report, which is current as of 3/7/17 @ 1:30 AM MST. Any feedback is welcome. Thanks.

Temple Construction Progress.docx (20.23 KB)

[Seth]

ldspsygenius, in addition to the Hartford and White Plains/Harrison Temples, locations were also scrapped for the original Samoa (Pago Pago), Nashville, Tegucigalpa, Philadelphia, and Winnipeg sites, to name a few immediate ones that come to mind. Eventually, other properties were located for those sites.

I understood that the original site identified for Urdaneta proved to be too unstable (high water table) to support a structure like a temple. Hopefully another suitable site will be found soon. It's only been 7 years since it was announced. Bogota and Kyiv took 9 years before they started construction, and Guayaquil took 14 years.

[James Anderson]

I heard anecdotally, so nothing official, that the Urdaneta site wsa to be/have been (based on what does finally come out(, south of the city on MacArthur Highway although it could have been a parallleling road, but that information is sketchy at best.

[james]

Thanks for that additional explanation, Seth! You are an amazing example of one who knows well all the nuances surrounding the temple site selection, what is going on with construction, and what might delay progress at various phases. I appreciate your comment above. I had no idea that all that was going on. I feel like I learned a lot from what you said. I am glad to see that temple construction progresses worldwide. And in spite of the fact that there has not been many reported reasons to change my progress report in the last 40.5 hours or so since I last posted an update, the ongoing developments continue. I am excited to see the ongoing developments that will continue to take place this year on that front. And hopefully my updates in this regard will be helpful to someone. Thanks again.

[james]

James, thanks for that additional insight regarding the Urdaneta site. I am hoping that the delays there might clear sufficiently enough within the next year or two to finally enable that temple to have a groundbreaking. I am doing my level best to keep an eye out for all of the latest developments in this regard. In the meantime, I am always so appreciative to hear the insights of others regarding subjects that have always been so close to my heart. And now, in some small way in the ever-widening field of ways in which I can do so, I too can now share my love of and appreciation for all that is happening, will happen, or might happen on the temple construction front. I hope that my insights, such as they have been, are and will yet be, will prove helpful to everyone and anyone who reads them. And I am also very appreciative of the fact that, through posting on different topics on this forum, I can now share my enthusiasm for the many different nuances and aspects of construction of present and future temples of the Church with all those who feel like reading my comments, such as they are. Thanks again to you, James.

[james]

With the news posted today on the LDS Church Temples website that Elder Neil L. Andersen confirmed this weekend the site purchase of the location the Church had been eyeing for the temple in Port-au-Prince Haiti, the status of that temple as the #1 most likely possibility for groundbreaking (aside from the temple in Harare, for which a site has yet to be identified and a groundbreaking scheduled), that temple site is predicting that we will see a groundbreaking for the first Haitian temple by no later than next year. I personally hope for sooner. The public identification and announcement of a temple site after one has been announced is a sure indication of its imminence. In the meantime, it meant that a change needed to be made to my temple construction progress report. You can find the latest version below. Thanks.

Temple Construction Progress.docx (23.59 KB)

[james]

While nothing has changed in terms of temple progress during the last 24 hours, the progress in the couple of days prior to that marked significant progress, and I never posted that report. So here it is: 

Temple Construction Progress.docx (24.54 KB)

[ldspsygenius]

I really appreciate the updated reports.

[james]

Mar 17, 2017 3:02:18 GMT ldspsygenius said:

I really appreciate the updated reports.

I am glad to hear that. I always enjoy hearing that the work I do to keep people updated on temple-related progress and developments, as well as those we might see happening in the future, is of value and interest to someone besides myself. For what it's worth, I have had a reason to update that report again today due to progress that has been made on the Concepcion Chile temple. The last report showed that exterior cladding was going up on the north wall and that the interior walls were being framed. The update today shows that the afore-mentioned cladding is progressing, that palm trees are being planted on the west side, that the monument sign is being poured, and that a waterproofing membrane is being attached to the east wall. As nothing else has changed, I won't post an updated copy of my report today. But I did want to note that change, for what it's worth.

[james]

I have done yet another update to my temple construction progress report. An attachment to that report follows below.


Temple Construction Progress.docx (24.71 KB)

[james]

For what it's worth, this is my latest report on temple construction progress. I am so appreciative for all those that labor to keep the rest of us updated on such progress, and I hope that my reports as posted on this forum can prove helpful, informative, and inspiring to those who read them. Thank you all.

Temple Construction Progress.docx (24.77 KB)