By Staff
Melissa Cason
The downtown area of Russellville is changing and those who venture down Washington Street quickly recognize the construction going on behind the First United Methodist Church of Russellville.
Senior Pastor Alan Beasley said the construction of church's Ministry Center began last week, and will continue over the next several months.
"We held the groundbreaking on Oct. 5, and we expect the construction to take eight to nine months to complete," Beasley said.
The new building will house a large activity area that can be used for many purposes from playing basketball to hosting a wedding receptions. The building will also have a new youth center, additional classrooms, and conference area. There will also be a walking track inside the building.
"We want this new building to be used for the betterment of our community," Beasley said.
The church hopes to use the building to provide activities for the community's youth as well as for senior citizens.
The construction is being done by Carbine Construction Company from Florence and the architect for the project is Calvin Durham of Lambert, Ezzell and Durham Architectural Firm.
"Calvin has worked with us on this project very closely," Beasley said. " We can't say enough about the Calvin on this project."
The new building will cost the church $1.65 million, which is being financed through CB&S Bank.
Beasley said the church is excited about the project, but reminds that it did not come along over night.
"The dream of this building began about 10 years ago, but the group breaking was the result of extensive work that took place over the period of a year," Beasley said.