Groundbreaking set for local Latter-day Saints temple

A June 6 groundbreaking has been set for Missouri’s third Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints temple, to be located on a 38.5-acre site in southeast Springfield.

Leaders of the Latter-day Saints announced the groundbreaking in a news release, noting they plan a ceremony for the event presided over by Elder Aroldo B. Cavalcante of the church’s United States Southeast Area Presidency. The temple site is located at 2720 E. Farm Road 188, according to Greene County assessor records.

The temple’s location near the intersection of U.S. 65 and Evans Road is close to the existing Ozark locations of Mercy Orthopedic Hospital Springfield, 3050 E. River Bluff Blvd., as well as the River Bluff Fellowship, an evangelical Southern Baptist church located at 2655 E. Farm Road 188.

Springfield Business Journal reached out to a local Latter-day Saints spokesperson seeking additional information such as the church’s investment to develop and construct the temple and when church officials expect construction to be completed.

The church’s investment to develop and construct the new facility is undisclosed, said local church spokesperson Sarah Saucedo-Carey. She said construction for a new temple proceeds along a three-year timeline. Before the Springfield temple is dedicated for use by Latter-day Saints members, Saucedo-Carey said an open house will be held so the general public can tour and view the facility.

In their news release, church officials note that Missouri has a place in Latter-day Saints early church history. According to Missouri state archives, in 1831 church founder Joseph Smith proclaimed that western Missouri was the place where Zion would be gathered in anticipation of Christ’s second coming. Smith’s group of missionaries soon became a steady stream of converts, according to the archives. Church officials say that currently, more than 84,000 Latter-day Saints call Missouri home, meeting in around 180 congregations.

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints President Russell Nelson announced the Springfield temple, along with 14 other temples to be constructed, at a general conference held by the church in April 2023.

The temple locations included four other U.S. cities along with Springfield, two cities in Brazil, two cities in the Philippines and cities in Guatemala, Peru, Indonesia, Germany and Canada.

Members of the Latter-day Saints faith frequently meet in chapels or meetinghouses for Sunday worship services, according to the release.

They must travel to temples for certain religious practices, but currently, the closest temple to Springfield is the one dedicated in September 2023 in Bentonville, Arkansas, according to past reporting.