Maureen Wallenfang
Appleton Post-Crescent
Published 8:45 AM EDT Aug 20, 2019
Reader question: I see there’s a big sold sign on the former Thompson Center. Is something new finally going in there?
Answer: Yes, but it’s about a year away. It will be the new location of The Core.
The former Thompson Center building at 820 W. College Ave. in Appleton was sold for $725,000 to St. Peter, a Lutheran church based in the town of Freedom near Appleton’s north side.
The Core is its related ministry at 222 W. Franklin St. in downtown Appleton. The Core will remain at its current location until renovations are complete on College Avenue.
Cramped space and parking were big considerations in the decision to move.
“We’ve grown. The Thompson Center gives us about three times the space,” said Pastor Tim Glende, lead pastor for 922 Ministries, the umbrella for both St. Peter and The Core.
“The new space will allow us a worship space that’s much larger, classroom space, offices and space for a community room that’s a benefit and blessing to the area around us,” he said.
The Thompson Center’s 90-stall parking lot solves its parking issues.
In addition, The Core has a partnership with Time of Grace, a national media organization, and it needed more space for recording, editing and a green room. The Core’s Pastor Mike Novotny is its speaking pastor, and it reaches an audience of more than “450,000 people on any given weekend,” Glende said.
The Core, started in 2008, reaches a different demographic from St. Peter, largely an 18- to 30-year-old group.
“We wanted to reach the unchurched and dechurched in the greater Appleton area with a ministry that was less traditional in worship style. The music, technology and setting are far different,” Glende said. “We love having our ministry downtown. The location and visibility on College Avenue is a huge, huge reason why this opportunity stood out to us.”
The Core’s building on Franklin Street will eventually be put up for sale. Several churches have already express an interest in it, he said.
Nothing will change at St. Peter on French Road.
Glende said they’re starting a campaign to raise money for the new building. An unidentified parishioner offered to match donations up to $725,000. Glende hopes to raise between $725,000 and $1 million for the purchase and renovation costs.
The building is in a TIF district, but Glende said they will not apply for TIF funds.
The Thompson Center, a nonprofit organization serving seniors, left the College Avenue building in March 2016 because of operational costs. It relocated to 2331 E. Lourdes Drive in Appleton, on the grounds of St. Bernadette Parish, and is now called Thompson Center on Lourdes.
Contact Maureen Wallenfang at 920-993-7116 or mwallenfang@postcrescent.com. Follow her on Twitter at @wallenfang.
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