CALDWELL, Idaho — More than a year after announcing a temple would be coming to Caldwell, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently revealed the location of its new worship space.
The future temple will be built on a 19.2-acre site near Indiana and Orchard avenues in south Caldwell. Plans call for an 82,000-square-foot multistory temple, along with a meetinghouse and an accompanying building for classrooms.
WATCH: Learn more about the Caldwell Temple
Jason Nielsen, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Caldwell Idaho Snake River Stake said the growth of the region drove the need for a new temple.
"The growth in the area has just been phenomenal, as we all know, there's growth happening all over, and as that happens, there's, you know, an increased burden that's put on the two existing temples where the attendance is going up," Nielsen said.
Nielsen said Idaho is home to more than 480,000 Latter-day Saints across roughly 1,300 congregations. With that growth comes the need for more temples across the state.
As excitement surrounding the future Caldwell temple grows, so do concerns from some community members. On the 2C Neighborhood News Facebook page, neighbors raised questions about how the temple's bright lighting could impact migrating wildlife.
When asked how church leaders plan to navigate those concerns, Nielsen said planning is handled at the church's Salt Lake level.
"Leadership that does the planning, and you know they do lots of studies around— you know lumens with the light— to understand what effect things are going to have, and then they work with and listen to neighbors and communities to ensure that the final product is something that will be a good neighbor. This is a long process," Nielsen said.
For community members unfamiliar with the difference between a local church building and a temple, Nielsen explained the distinction. Local church buildings, or meetinghouses, are where members attend services every Sunday, participate in ordinances, attend Sunday school, and gather for worship.
Temples serve a different and more sacred purpose. Nielsen said members do not attend temples on a regular schedule, the way they do Sunday services. Instead, attendance is a personal decision made between the member and God.
"In the temple, we make commitments, we perform ordinances that bind us to Jesus Christ. So it's something that's very sacred for members of the church. It's very personal," Nielsen said during the interview.
Nielsen said the first time a member attends the temple, they make those ordinances and commitments for themselves. Every subsequent visit involves performing those same ordinances on behalf of someone who has passed away.
"So that's one of the reasons the church does so much genealogical work, where we're helping our ancestors, and we're providing them an opportunity to receive the same ordinances that we were able to receive in life," Nielsen said.
Nielsen also noted that each temple is unique in its design, reflecting the character of the community, state, or country where it is built. When a new temple is completed, the church traditionally holds a public open house before the temple is dedicated, allowing community members to tour the building.
Nielsen said the community will have plenty of opportunities to learn more and ask questions as the project moves forward. He said a website is being set up specifically to address frequently asked questions about the temple, and community meetings are expected to be held throughout the planning process.
"There's going to be lots of opportunity for some community meetings and opportunities for the community to ask questions and to get answers," Nielsen said.
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