Added Parking and
Landscaping Enhance Jarvis's "Look"
in Downtown Greenville
CLICK HERE FOR SLIDE SHOW
OF NEW JARVIS LANDSCAPING!
Jarvis Memorial United Methodist Church Building is among the oldest buildings in downtown Greenville. The first meeting held in a portion of the current facility at the current location was the same day in March 1907 that the legislature voted to approve East Carolina Teachers College. The first church service was March 10, 1907. Jarvis has been an integral part of downtown Greenville since that time. Most of the town of Greenville from MLK to the River burned in 1910. The Skinner house was among the few buildings saved from the fire. The Winslow Building was built as a stable in 1910 after the fire.
Jarvis was remodeled in the 50s and again in the 70s. The Family Life Center was built in the 90s.
In 1994, Jarvis saw many churches leaving downtown Greenville and decided Greenville should have a church presence in the downtown area and made a commitment to stay downtown. That commitment was reaffirmed before building the Christian Life Center that opened in 1999. When the Taft Furniture Company building became available the decision was reevaluated and again confirmed.
Jarvis is a church of 2300 members. It has multiple meetings 7 days and nights a week. There are about 35 meetings each week with an estimated 2500 people coming to those meetings. Frequently this group of people will eat and/or shop at the same time they come to meetings or bring their children to the children’s programs. Jarvis has run out of space and this is limiting its growth; and any institution that does not grow, withers. Enhancing the programs should therefore enhance the economic activity of downtown Greenville.
One need only read the history of Jarvis Church to see how the need for "more space" and the need for modernization to allow more effective ministry has been a constant cry for practically every generation since the mid-19th century. The year 2007 is no different.
In 1762, Charles Wesley penned these immortal words:
A charge to keep I have, a God to glorify,
A never-dying soul to save and fit it for the sky!
As we move forward in the 21st Century, may we never forget the charge WE have to minister here in Greenville. Our commitment to that charge is nowhere more evident than in this forward-looking building program and the zeal to spread the message of Christ it represents!
In 2006, Jarvis Memorial committed to a plan "to aesthetically enhance the current structure, using brick and architecture as true to its historical façade as possible. To create an esthetically pleasing, unified, busy campus in downtown Greenville would be a positive step forward for everyone. It will provide Jarvis the opportunity to add additional programs and ministries and additional facilities are necessary to do this. It will give the library parking space and space to expand. It will provide the city the opportunity to expand its parking capacity as well as provide church owned parking which is available to everyone, an important step for both current and future merchants and services in the area. It will increase the incidental exposure of current and future business in the downtown area by drawing more than 2500 people to the church and downtown area each week."
A first goal of this ambitious plan has now been achieved. Jarvis Memorial is now blessed with ample parking and a beautifully landscaped "green area" directly in front of the edifice.
In 2006, the Trustees of Jarvis Memorial elected to purchase the Taft Furniture Store property situated directly across Washington Street from our Sanctuary and Education Building. At the time, how that large old building would be used by the church was not clear. But the decision was consistent with our church's long-standing commitment to purchase property adjacent to the present edifice as it becomes available in the sure knowledge that additional space will be needed as Jarvis membership and outreach to the community and the world continues to grow.
Dr. Jim Carter, in his presentation to the Greenville City Council in the Spring of 2007, made the following remarks:
