For decades, Neighborhood Congregational Church (NCC) thrived, serving the needs of Laguna Beach families. But today, we live in different times. Churches all over the country are closing as they struggle to remain relevant to millions of Americans who identify as spiritual but not religious.
In 2020, our congregation decided to come to terms with reality. On any given Sunday, we had fewer than 50 people in a church built for over 200. Faced with the choice of spending down our dwindling endowment to survive, or selling the property, our congregation was advised to close the church and sell the property to the highest bidder.
Instead, we began researching the feasibility of a vision that could serve the greater good of Laguna Beach and do justice to the land gifted to us by our founders. Our research and hearts tell us it’s time to create space to address two synergistic opportunities we believe are in our destiny to pursue.
The City’s General Plan Housing Element (2021-2029) identified NCC’s property as one with the potential to yield affordable housing units. As we understand it, the City of Laguna Beach is required to encourage its “fair share” of housing with the addition of 394 housing units—affordable to all economic segments—over the next five years.
The NCC vision is to build a different kind of spiritual center for a different generation and provide affordable housing for those earning between $33,150 to $102,300 a year, depending on family size – seniors, city and school employees, artists, retail workers and other lower-wage employees. These are the people who help our community thrive. NCC and Related California have not yet submitted an application for the proposed development to the city. The preliminary site plan included in Related’s application for the city’s Notice of Funding Availability is not the development design. Unfortunately, misinformation and images are being circulated that are an unfair misrepresentation of our project.
The team is hard at work designing a spiritual center and affordable rentals that will benefit the community for decades to come. As part of our outreach process, we are simultaneously meeting with neighbors. Residents can stay informed about our progress via the website at nccproject.org.
Over the next few months, I respectfully ask for the community’s patience as we prepare our application, which will have all the details. Then, we will invite input. I welcome the conversation.
Rodrick Echols, Neighborhood Congregational Church Pastor and Sue Cross, NCC board chair
Dear Mr. Echols,
I find your letter rude and disrespectful to your neighbors. You have asked for the moon and expect your neighbors to trust you? How disrespectful. Never have the citizens of Laguna Beach disrespected you. I’ve enjoyed many functions at the Neighborhood Congressional Church as a few weddings too. I’ve seen the neighborhood around the church deal with the overflow of parking when there were large functions at the church. This is how you repay them. Is it the neighborhood’s fault that you can’t get people to hear your sermons. It’s apparent that you don’t care, and you are more in our town to make a profit and not to save souls.
OMG, you have got to be kidding? (Higher power irony intentional).
If you’re not proposing 72 units (in the range of 200+ occupants) with only 108 parking spaces, then do as Matthew 26:33-34 notes.
Deny that’s what’s going to be in your application, only instead of Peter, you’ll only be asked to pledge it once: NOW.
Place a 1-page ad, I’m sure Bill Witte has the sanctimonious “bread” (couldn’t resist the temptation, Mea culpa) and instead of allowing all of this anxiety to proliferate, do the humanitarian, ethically PC thing.
I circled the block and extended neighborhood yesterday after checking my P.O. Box downtown around 10 am.
Even at that hour, before the hordes descend to forage at shops, for grindage (food) or to hit the beach. bet you know what I’m gonna write: There were no parking spaces to be had.
The employees of downtown/south central downtown businesses have already gobbled them up for the day.
On weekends, from what I’ve observed it’s even worse.
As he watched him go, Jesus told his disciples, “Do you have any idea how difficult it is for the rich to enter God’s kingdom? Let me tell you, it’s easier to gallop a camel through a needle’s eye tha “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 19:23-26
“No good deed goes unpunished.”
― Oscar Wilde
Amen, Chris. Laguna Beach is MANDATED to provide affordable housing, NCC is helping to meet this mandate. Church going has been in a steep decline for a long time all over the country, so the transition to a spiritual center model while providing a much-needed service to our community is also a moral imperative. As a Master’s trained long-time gerontologist serving the needs of older adults and those with Alzheimer’s on a nonprofit salary, I hope to live in one of the units. Also, I feel there is a real bias against renters in this town, although we make up 40% of the population. Rental costs keep rising, and the ADU’s recently built are no help whatsoever. I love my community; I have rented here for 25+ years and I volunteer and serve my community whenever possible. I pray that I can continue to live here but there is a real fear of being priced out of the outrageous rental market here in Laguna. Also, there is NO call for being disrespectful toward Pastor Echols, how rude…
Kim, why should Us the Residents of Laguna Beach and particularly the property owners and residents of neighborhoods in the immediate proximity to this planned development not be concerned with the NCC’s intent to impact not only the residents views, and property values, but their very safety? This proposal is way too large in scale for the zone in which it is proposed. I do not believe that anyone can argue that Public safety alone should nullify the plan in its current state. Public safety is, and should be the primary concern when adopting development right in the middle of an evacuation route. Our City Council needs to address the public concern and protect Us the Residents of Laguna Beach.
So far, no one knows if the funding is in place, and no one knows what the proposed project will look like. Could you wait until then? You could use the time to do some research. For example, multiple studies have shown that affordable housing projects do not impact neighbors’ property values. Here’s one: https://www.trulia.com/research/low-income-housing/#
Chris:
You might find it difficult to believe, but I do respect your input.
It was the NCC that vetted a rehab of the existing, historically important building complex and a 21 Unit affordable/low income housing aspect a few years ago.
So a “sneak preview” DID happen.
Then CR/NCC vetted the current 72 Unit one, complete with conceptual architectural/floor plans.
Now all of this “wait & see” feedback, when knowing that it’s CEQA-exempt is a justifiable alarm bell.
If you knew that a CEQA-exempt project of any such magnitude (21 Units minimum) was going to be wedged, “shoe-horned” next door to you, can you honestly state that you’d be content with “wait & see?”
Remember, no exactions, no concessions, no mitigations==Little or no say-so for you and your neighbors, a type of disenfranchising, stripping you preemptively of the usual legal rights for redress of grievances that CEQA mandates..
Ms. Bailey:
The line between a capitalist corporate venture and reasonable development is being crossed—blaming any of us for criticizing any party, especially NCC leadership, is fair game.
They don’t deserve to be treated any different than any other redeveloper, that erases the line between church & state, SCOTUS be damned.
They & for profit Cal-Related ARE leveraging the non-profit status to gain an advantage via SB-4, it’s as obvious as the nose on leadership’s faces.
Obfuscating, stalling, hiding behind such status will make those noses grow longer a la Pinocchio
Well, what if I told you that I’m not only a “Pastafarian,” but am a certified Minister in The Church Of The Flying Spaghetti Monster (look it up), hmmmm?
Go to http://www.spaghettimonster.org
When I joined long ago, I paid $100, got a t-shirt, a coffee mug, a copy of its dogma/canon “The Gospel Of The Flying Spaghetti Monster” (He Boiled For Your Sins), and my Certificate of Ordination.
With such Ordination, ministers can perform weddings and baptisms, perform exorcisms, last rites, etc.
We call ourselves “Minestrones.”
Every Friday is a Religious Holiday.
No dues.
Beer Volcano in the afterlife.
Pirate Regalia worn at formal functions.
We are not an officially recognized non-profit here in the USA, but we’re working towards it.
So as a de facto “pastor,” I’m just exercising my 1st amendment rights. By your logic, do I merit automatic respect?
Speaking of which, I think a lot of people have already lost respect for NCC, how else to explain 50 or fewer members?
If I and/or my NGO CLEAN WATER NOW, held a town hall or something similar, I’ll bet my life that I could get hundreds to attend.
In fact, we already did: “The Night Of The Endless Bummer.”
LB City Council waved a white flag, held a special meeting to address our coalition’s water quality concerns, look it up:
November 9, 1999.
Steve Dicterow was Mayor and we negotiated a stand alone LBCC meeting as a kind of ocean-impacted workshop.
Council Chambers overflowed out onto the lawn and also Forest Ave. It ended ups about a 4 hour marathon, hundreds attended, dozens spoke.
The LBPD had to exercise traffic control at the intersection because 3 different news stations sent reporters and camera men.
Yes, I was the ringleader as ED of CWN. And yes, it was a circus, a spectacle, but also a “hallowed, sacred service” attended by those seeking a higher purpose.
Cleaner, less polluted streams and protect our near-tidal ocean, where our families and friends immersed themselves in baptism almost every day.
Selah!