Mary Lynn Heinen
River Realty

• (509) 544-2790 - Office
• (509) 948-7374 - Cell
• marylynnheinen@charter.net - E-mail

The RealEstateJournal.com reports on a The Wall Street Journal Online story that a number of churches with large congregations are moving into commercial and retail spaces such as strip malls, former big box locations, and even arenas. These locations are not as spectacular as conventional churches but they are usually cheaper than building a new facility.

Churches also hope that these retail locations might attract visitors who shop at nearby stores. Cities are not always too happy with these moves though because churches acquiring commercial property are exempt from taxes and may even bring in more traffic than the area was designed to handle. Nearby businesses worry that the church will not draw foot traffic to their store during the week.

For three years, Christ Church of Montclair, N.J., has been locked in a battle with Rockaway Township, N.J., over its $14 million acquisition of Agilent Technologies Inc.’s 107-acre office and research facility there.

In addition to a 2,500-seat sanctuary, the church wants to build a K-5 school and recreational facilities for its congregation of nearly 5,000 people. But local officials, concerned about the impact of a crush of parishioners on city services and a potential loss of tax dollars, have so far blocked the project.

“What are we getting out of this?” says Louis Sceusi, mayor of Rockaway Township, which has a population of 22,000. Christ Church, in turn, has filed a federal lawsuit claiming religious discrimination.

The most high-profile move to a commercial locations is Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. Last year they relocated to the former 16,000 seat Compaq Center that was once was home to the NBA’s Rockets.

Your thoughts?

RealEstateJournal has an article giving ideas where to search online for good information about property values. The article gives pointers on what sites to visit, what the sites offer, and other ways to sleuth real-estate data.

The three sites that are recommended are:

• Realtor.com
• Owners.com
• ForSaleByOwner.com

Leo Heintz Realty
1239 Meade Ave
Prosser, WA 99350

• (509) 786-3228

Help U Sell Of Kennewick
4306 W Cleawater Ave
Kennewick, WA 99336

• (509) 737-8080

Himsl Real Estate Company
704 6th St
Prosser, WA 99350

• (509) 786-1234

Home Caretakers Inc. 5903 W Clearwater Ave Kennewick, WA 99336

• (509) 783-0658

Kiemle & Hagood Co.
552 N Colorado St
Kennewick, WA 99336

• (509) 737-8900

Landmark Brokerage Inc.
290 Torbett St
Richland, WA 99354

• (509) 943-0611

LaMothe & Associates Inc
10024 W Court
Pasco, WA 99301

• (509) 543-3600

RE/MAX First Advantage
1110 Center Pkwy, Suite A
Kennewick, WA 99336

• (509) 736-3344
• (509) 735-9755 (fax)
• (800) 736-2964 (toll-free)

TriCity-Homes.com

• (509) 952-5462
• tricity-homes.com

Roger Gray & Associates
27 N Morain
Kennewick, WA 99336

• (509) 735-1566

Markel Properties
8551 W Gage Blvd, Suite N
Kennewick, WA 99336

• (509) 735-6500 - Office
• (509) 302-0010 - Se Habla Espanol
• info@markelproperties.com - Email

Moore & Mellor Realty
601 6th St
Prosser, WA 99350

• (509) 786-1452