Church holds last service at ‘circles’ neighborhood site

SANTA CRUZ – Worshippers gathered on the lawn of the Gospel Community Church at the center of the Santa Cruz “circles” for the last time during a cool and overcast Sunday morning.

The church has been occupied by the Gospel Community Church for the last three years, but the site has served as a place of worship for more than 100 years. The original chapel was built in 1890 and was rebuilt after a fire in the 1960s.

“With the history of this church, it’s sad to see it go, but it’s exciting to see what happens next,” Brandon — said of the Gospel Community Church leaving its current building and moving on to a new location. “This is a historical place and its been here for so long. To learn about the history of it and how it affected the whole neighborhood is really cool.”

Now, the property will serve the community in a new way. The church is set to be demolished and replaced by 12 family housing units in a community housing complex, according to the developer, Brett Packer.

The complex is designed to house both families and elder residents. Each unit will be self-sufficient, having its own kitchen, bathroom and other amenities, but the complex will also feature a shared outdoor kitchen as well as a garden and play area for children, Packer noted.

Each unit will also have the capability of building an in-law unit on the property. Therefore, the new development could end up housing as many as 24 families.

“We are trying to solve the housing situation in this way,” Packer said. “We are pro housing. We want to create as much housing and as much diversity in housing as possible.”

Gospel Community Church will make the Santa Cruz Seventh Day Adventist Church on Cayuga Street its new home. Church leadership said sharing the building with another church should not be a problem, especially since they worship on Saturdays.

“I’m excited for the future. Obviously, this place will always be near and dear to everyone here, but I don’t see it as a bad thing. I see it as the next phase in the church’s life,” Gavin Kjedlsen a follower who used to travel from Petaluma to visit family in the area and would attend the service in town. “I think the new place will have advantages to it. I think it’s going to bring great things. It’s a good step.”

The Church also sees the move as an opportunity to reach out to a new part of town and connect with new neighbors, O’Sullivan said.

However, the Gospel Church is no stranger to relocation. The church originally began in a follower’s living room in May of 2018 as a small group who liked to worship together. It then transitioned to the back porch and eventually the circle church in October of 2018 as the congregation grew.

As the final service at the circle church concluded, Pastor O’Sullivan shared a verse of encouragement as his congregation prepares to move to its new home. The verse spoke of building a church around God and not a physical location, which encapsulates the history of the church.

“This really is the heart of the neighborhood, and we see that. This really has been a great place for people to gather,” O’Sullivan said. “We see this as a hugely significant place. It is bitter-sweet, but like I said, Christ is building His church and the people of God are not about the location.”

Gospel Community Church will have its first service at its new location on Oct. 3.

“I think the last sermon here was beautiful,” Kjeldsen said. “I think they did it as good as they possibly could.”