The Presbytery of Tampa Bay 4704 Kelly Road, Tampa, Florida 33615 June 19, 2014 Dear Presbyters, The next Stated Meeting of our Presbytery will be held on Thursday, June 26th, beginning at 9 a.m., at First Presbyterian Church, Lakeland, located at 175 Lake Hollingsworth Drive, Lakeland, Florida 33801. Please encourage first time Commissioners to arrive in time for a brief orientation at 8:30 a.m. in the sanctuary. We will begin the meeting with our worship of God together. Mr. Kenny Ellis, candidate for ordination, will preach the message. Commissioners will examine a candidate for ordination as a Teaching Elder, as well as receive a report from the Administrative Commission for 4704 Kelly Road. The docket schedules adjournment for noon. The docket includes very important actions on matters that the documents included here address. Please review the materials in advance and bring an accessible copy with you. Note that the papers regarding Kelly Road that were distributed for the 8 May 2014 Stated Meeting will not be redistributed, so please bring those with you. The Bylaws provide for two types of Presbytery meetings, Stated and Special. The Presbytery approved the date and place for this meeting at the time it voted to defer action on the motion from the AC for 4704 Kelly Road, which distinguishes this as a Stated Meeting rather than a Special Meeting, which would have to have been called by the Coordinating Team. This Presbytery meeting will not include lunch nor will child care be provided. Please pray as we prepare to gather as a Presbytery at First Presbyterian Church, Lakeland. In Christ s service, Patrice Hatley Patrice Hatley, Moderator Louis Charles Willard Louis Charles Willard, Stated Clerk Reminder: Teaching Elder members of the Presbytery, if unable to attend, should request an excused absence through the Stated Clerk (statedclerk@pbty.com). Telephone (813) 868-4800 Fax (813) 200-1054 www.presbyteryoftampabay.com
8:15 a.m. Registration Opens Refreshments PRESBYTERY OF TAMPA BAY STATED MEETING THURSDAY, JUNE 26, 2014 FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, LAKELAND, FLORIDA 8:30 a.m. First Time Commissioner Orientation in Sanctuary Stated Clerk Charles Willard 9:00 a.m. Call to Order and Opening Prayer (Sanctuary) Moderator Patrice Hatley Declaration of a Quorum Approval of Agenda Greeting of Host Pastor TE Mike Loudon Introduction of First Time Commissioners and Corresponding Members Appointment of Tellers Moderator 9:15 a.m. Worship 9:45 Report of the Commission on Ministry RE Jerry Smith Examination for Ordination of Kenny Ellis 10:45 Report of the Administrative Commission for 4704 Kelly Road RE Terry Dennis 12 noon Adjournment with Prayer and a Hymn Moderator Patrice Hatley
The Administrative Commission on 4704 Kelly Road Update as of June 16, 2014 At the May meeting of The Presbytery, the Administrative Commission was tasked to have additional interaction with Chapel in the Pines (CITP), as was the Commission on Church Vitality (CCV), in order to come up with a plan to assist in the relocation of CITP. On Sunday June 8 th, four members of the Commission, along with Transitional Presbyter Nancy Kahaian, met with the Session of CITP. Immediately after the meeting with the Administrative Commission, two members of CCV met with the Session in a separate meeting. The Commission actively listened as each member of the CITP Session was offered an opportunity to share thoughts, suggestions or concerns about the proposed recommendation. The Session was not of one accord on whether the move should be made, on how any proceeds or associated costs should be allocated, or on how to proceed if a full sale was not approved. The following items were each expressed by one or more members during the meeting: 1. That this is a Presbytery issue (the office not being needed), and CITP should not be impacted because of it. 2. CITP would prefer to see a fixed guaranteed amount designated towards them rather than a percentage of the split of proceeds. 3. That the parcels should be split, with the Presbytery bearing any and all costs required to bring CITP s property up to current code. 4. That some members have attended here for decades and do not really want to relocate. 5. That this may be the timing for a move that would be beneficial to the growth of the congregation 6. That CITP did not receive enough time to investigate and/or confirm the options not recommended by the Commission. 7. That the Presbytery should attempt to sell the office building, while allowing CITP to lease the ground beneath it to the potential buyer. The Administrative Commission, in response to this meeting, continues to fully support its original recommendation (presented at the May 8 Presbytery
meeting) to sell the entire 4.83 acres containing both the Presbytery Office Building and CITP, although we have included several modifications based upon CITP concerns. 1. A guaranteed floor of $300,000 has been added to the allocation of funds, which provides CITP 43% of net proceeds. If the property (appraised at $1,225,000) were to net less than $697,675, then CITP would receive $300,000 any net sale for higher than that would revert to the 43% computation. 2. We have prioritized the need to begin the search immediately for a new Presbytery Office location and to transition out of Kelly Road. 3. We have included in the recommendation the need to convene a body that will assist CITP in the planning and implementation of a relocation. 4. We have included the potential need to have a temporary funding source identified that can assist in the relocations of both CITP and the Presbytery Office if they occur prior to funds being received from a property sale. Although difficult in different ways to both parties, we believe that with the inclusion of these modifications, the recommendation before you is the direction that will best serve both the Presbytery of Tampa Bay and the congregation of CITP in the long term. It was acknowledged in our joint meeting that even among the Session of CITP there is not consensus on whether a sale or a move is the correct step for them or that it is not. For the Presbytery, it will almost assuredly mean a loss of financial value since the building now has an appraised monetary value far less than its original cost. Moreover, the property value is continuing to decrease over time, and the Presbytery meanwhile continues to invest in it on a monthly basis. Presbytery also has the liability of future costly repairs for what has now become an underutilized building for much of the day. For CITP, we have a congregation in a location that has not seen growth in recent years, has limited financial resources for its current ministry, would face a financial liability if current costs covered by the Presbytery (such as trash pickup) were assumed by CITP, and are worshipping in a building that has both current and future maintenance needs.
Amended Recommendation (additions underlined) Recommendation for Action by the Presbytery The Administrative Commission on the use of property located at 4704 Kelly Road, after an intensive study of this property, recommends to the Presbytery of Tampa Bay that: 1. The office use by the Presbytery be transferred to a location that is more appropriately sized for the current and future use of the Presbytery, provides adequate access and parking, and is at a financially sustainable cost to the Presbytery. The search for a suitable new location to begin expeditiously. 2. That due to challenges in dividing the property (listed as one parcel on government records, even though each building has an individual street address) and in order to best appeal to multiple markets, that both 4704 Kelly Road (Presbytery Offices) and 4546 Kelly Road (Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian Church) be placed on the market. 3. That the net proceeds received from the sale of the property would be allocated at the following levels: Presbytery of Tampa Bay 57% CITP 43%, or $300,000, whichever is greater. 4. That the Presbytery put in place the appropriate bodies to proceed with: a. The marketing of the property. b. The search for a site for the Presbytery Office relocation. c. Assisting CITP in its relocation search and implementation. 5. Since it is likely that one or both of the relocations will occur prior to the closing of a sale on the current property, that the Presbytery Coordinating Team be authorized to expend funds from existing reserves in order to cover required relocation expenses for Presbytery and/or CITP. All such funds provided from Presbytery reserves will be repaid from the appropriate parties proceeds of the property sale.