Developer delivers large gift

Homebuilder saves Culpeper church from having to move by donating land for parking lot.

By DONNIE JOHNSTON

Date published: 12/23/2006

It was a case of Jewish Santa Claus showing up on the last day of Hanukkah to save Christmas.

This is one of those feel-good stories that embraces the holiday spirit, one of hope, charity and goodwill among men.

It is also the story of a big developer going out of its way to help preserve the history and integrity of the community.

Mostly, however, it is a story of neighbors working together.

Three years ago, the Free Methodist Church of Culpeper found itself in a real predicament. Augustine Homes of Fredericksburg had purchased the 15-acre parcel next door and was getting a site plan approved to build 38 new homes.

The new subdivision about to be built next to the 85-year-old Sperryville Pike church was at first not a major concern of the 50-member congregation.

While checking out the survey map with project manager Byron Counsell, however, the elders discovered that most of church's parking lot was actually part of the Augustine's development.

"We realized that if we didn't have those spaces, there would be no place for our people to park," said Scott Rife, a trustee for Free Methodist.

The church elders approached Counsell and asked if there was any way Augustine could help. The project manager suggested that the congregation might construct a parking lot on a small strip of land it owned behind the church.

That land, however, was steep and would require a great deal of excavating and the construction of a retaining wall. Further, Culpeper town officials told the elders that if they built a lot out back, it would have to be paved to conform to building ordinances.

"We figured that would cost us about $10,000 per space," Rife said, an amount the small congregation knew it could not afford.

Now, the little church, whose founding was inspired by a May 7, 1921, revival held by the Rev. L.H. Kelley, knew it was in real trouble.

"At times, the problem seemed insurmountable," said Rife, recalling that a church women's group began regularly holding prayer sessions in the parking lot. "There were times when we just sat there at board meetings not knowing what to do."

With the prospect of losing its parking lot almost a certainty, the church turned to local commercial real-estate broker Laura Newman to help find another parcel on which to relocate.

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Date published: 12/23/2006