When Lee McLean’s church needed a permanent location, he was glad to use his professional skills to benefit an organization with personal meaning and community impact.
“I had the opportunity to use my experience in commercial real estate to serve the church in a professional capacity, but also in a volunteer capacity leading a great building team,” says McLean, a commercial real estate broker with Plaza Realty & Management Services Inc. “Due to a recent split with our previous church, we had the unique circumstances of having less than a year of operation and fundraising but upwards of 600 to 700 people who attend our church.
“Finding a property that would meet our congregational needs but also fit within our budget was a challenge that was difficult to overcome.”
McLean, a certified commercial investment member, worked with other volunteers, headed up property investigations, met with architects and engineers, and consulted with city staff to ensure the property was an appropriate fit.
“One reason I consider this one of my proudest moments was the opportunity to successfully work on a project that was professional, personal and community related,” he says of The Venues church moving into the vacant former church building at 2616 E. Battlefield Road.
McLean has spent 12 years in commercial real estate and has been tapped to market downtown’s white elephant, the Heer’s building, under renovation by Lee’s Summit-based Dalmark Development Group.
“I have witnessed with many others in our community the numerous times we have believed the Heer’s building renovation would finally take place. … This project is different from many others because of the symbolic significance it has to our community,” McLean says.
In addition to volunteering for his church, McLean is involved in several community endeavors. He has served for five years on the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce’s Red Carpet Committee, and he is president of the Westside Optimist Club. Additionally, McLean served for six years on the advisory board for Ashley House, formerly known as the Regional Girls Shelter.
“We have helped raise money for clothing and activities for the girls of Ashley House that typically come to their residential care facilities with nothing but the clothing they are wearing,” he says.
McLean also is a board member for Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services of Missouri – the parent organization of Ashley House – that aids children and families through residential care, foster care, mentoring and support statewide. He is the board secretary and chairs the development committee.
“My position on the board ... is unique for someone of my age, as many of my colleagues there are near retirement age, and I am the youngest member of that board,” McLean says. “I am proud of the fact that they have placed me in two leadership positions.”[[In-content Ad]]
