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player ready...Residents whose homes surround the Evangelical Baptist Church, 5300 W. 151st St., left this week’s City Council meeting with few answers to their concerns about changes to the church’s property.
The structure, which has been vacant for years, will be completed within the next 12 to 18 months as the congregation spends an estimated $4 million to improve it, according to Building Commissioner Luke Kent.
The property, originally owned by the Oak Forest Baptist Temple, was left the last nine years as a steel girder shell with a partial roof after temple members were unable to raise money to finish the project. It later sold the structure and property to the Evangelical Baptist Church, which is making improvements and installing a parking lot to accommodate 600 cars.
Construction crews have raised the ire of residents who contend the church is higher than the surrounding land, and the runoff will drain into yards and basements. Residents contend they were not notified that building permits had been approved.
Mayor Patrick Gordon told those in the attendance that the church had complied with all building codes.