This year, the BUUF Board engaged in a discernment process about the long-term future of the Chelan property located behind the grove on the east side.

Two Congregational Town Halls (February 2025 & November 2024) were held to invite the congregation’s input. After additional research and conversations with Garden City Planning & Zoning and Public Works, it was determined that multi-unit and/or multi-use development (beyond what is there now or a single family home) is not a viable option. The Garden City sewer system is over capacity and no additional hookups will be permitted now or in the foreseeable future.

Details from each of those Town Halls are below followed by original background about the property and the current situation that became the catalyst for this discussion.

The congregational vote regarding the property is NOW LIVE through Wednesday, May 21, 2025 at midnight. All voting members received an electronic ballot via OpaVote (check your junk mail). The quorum for this vote is 20% of our voting membership to participate, for a minimum of 58 total ballots to be cast. For a vote to pass with congregational approval, a ⅔ vote in the affirmative is required.  We are choosing to use this electronic voting process to allow for maximum voter participation. In past electronic votes, we have seen a voter participation of over 50% of the membership (well beyond a quorum).

If you have any issues regarding your ballot, please contact Nan Harms in the church office 208-658-1710.

February Town Hall

Feb. Town Hall Presentation Slides

Original Options for Consideration presented November 2024

November Town Hall Meeting Notes (Bob Smith, VP)

Garden City Planning & Zoning Meeting Notes (Bob Smith, VP)

Please click the blue links for each option below for more information about that option.

• OPTION 1 – Stay the Course: keep doing what we’re doing
• Chelan Option #1

• OPTION 2 – Develop the land for future BUUF use without residential tenants
• Chelan Option #2

• OPTION 3 – Sell the property and use funds to further our mission and vision
• Chelan Option #3

• OPTION 4 – Hybrid Option to subdivide the Chelan Lot into two parcels, selling one lot and keeping the other for potential future use
• Chelan Option #4

• OPTION 5 – Develop the property for affordable housing in partnership with other community organizations
• Chelan Option #5

Background on the Property

Chelan FACT SHEET (shared during November Town Hall)

This following description comes from the 2016 Chelan Task Force (members Roger Sherman, chair, Jim Bigelow, Emmie Schlobohm, Wyatt Schroeder, Ken Watts).

The property is an apx. one acre strip accessed via Chelan St. and is located directly behind the eastern most end of the fellowship (behind the grove). The property was purchased in 2008 when the previous owners of the property gave BUUF the first-right-of-refusal when they decided to sell. BUUF purchased it via a personal loan from a BUUF member and a bank mortgage. Ultimately, about half the loan and mortgage were paid off by BUUF members’ & friends’ donations, and about half was paid off by a bequest from the estate of long-time member Jo Douglas in 2011.

The property has two houses on it which the congregation currently rents to public tenants. There is also a large barn/shed building and a pasture on the property where horses and a goat currently graze. The properties share a well for domestic water and irrigation. The south house is quite small (about 800 Sq. ft.). Upgrades to the south property include painting about 70% of the rooms, a new toilet, shower, and lots of door casing and baseboard repairs. It has a shop that is quite spacious and includes a separate office/storage space.  The north house is a manufactured home nicely installed on a permanent foundation with a large crawl space underneath. It is approximately 1600 sq. feet with two bathrooms and three bedrooms. The property suffers from some very poor remodeling. A 2015 early summer remodel fixed some of the worst issues at the time.

After having to evict a tenant in 2015, the board became concerned about the Fellowship’s role as landlord and formed a task force to explore possible options for use of the property in hopes of finding a use more compatible with BUUF’s mission. In the meantime, the board also authorized contracting with a property management company to deal with rent collection and maintenance which had previously been done by BUUF volunteers.

Current Situation as of 2024

The congregation currently rents this property at below-market rates to two families, one of which still uses the grounds to corral their horses. We consider this use of the property consistent with a social justice intent to help mitigate the high cost of housing in the area.

In May of 2024, the Board was informed that there were a number of repair issues on the manufactured home that needed attention and the Board authorized spending $5000 to make the most urgent repairs and those that were safety issues. Bob Smith was authorized to act as general contractor for these repairs, and most of the work was done with volunteer labor. 

After a “walk-through” and a thorough assessment of maintenance needs going forward, it was estimated that future repairs could cost at minimum $15,000 to $30,000, depending on whether we were able to use volunteer labor. 

At that time we began to consider, once again, how we might use this resource and whether it makes sense to continue on the current path. In the meantime, BUUF staff has taken on the job of property management since we did not renew the contract with the property management company, citing their negligence in keeping BUUF informed of maintenance needs.  

With this current outlook in mind, the 2024-2025 BUUF Board of Directors set the goal to undertake a discernment process by investigating all the possible options for the property that have been suggested in past years. They put together information pages with explanations and offered pros and cons for each option. At the 2 Town Hall meetings, congregants had the opportunity to receive information about the boards process, ask questions, and give vital feedback to the board.

Revisit Email Communications Sent About the Chelan Discernment Process

President’s Message 10/08/2024

Fall Town Hall Announcement 10/28/2024

President’s Message 12/06/2024

Winter Town Hall Announcement 01/18/2025

President’s Message 01/30/2025

Updates from Your Board 03/25/2025