The Seventh-day Adventist Church just broke ground on extending its headquarters at 12501 Old Columbia Pike, which will be added on the far left side of the building.Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Dayton Business Journal - by Tierney Plumb DBJ Contributor
The General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists broke ground on a major expansion of its world headquarters in Silver Spring Tuesday.
The three-story extension of the main building at 12501 Old Columbia Pike will mostly house the Hope Channel, the protestant denomination’s global TV network.
Hanover, Penn.-based Conewago Enterprises Inc. is the general contractor for the $5 million project, which will be built on the far left side of the building.
“The expansion is needed because we’re bursting at the seams in the main building,” said Scott Steward, marketing director of the Hope Channel.
The new building will have 24,000 square feet of space and the Hope Channel studio will be about 3,000 square feet with room for multiple sets. It currently occupies just 600 square feet in the basement of the main building.
“This will allow Hope Channel to improve efficiency, quality, and quantity of production for live and recorded programs,” said Steward.
The project is slated to be completed within 300 days.
More than 850 people work in the world headquarters building and no additional staff is expected to be hired at this time, he said.
Hope Channel is an international network of 10 channels using 11 different satellites that air family-friendly Christian lifestyle TV in multiple languages.
Hope Channel, launched in 2003, works with the church’s media centers around the world and will be added to DirecTV on channel 368 beginning April 29.
Seventh-day Adventists have nearly 16 million members worldwide and are known for their healthcare, education, media, and disaster relief work. In the Dayton area, the Kettering Health Network follows in the spirit of Seventh-day Adventist healthcare ministry, saying on its Web site, "We strive to be innovative and to convey God's love in a caring environment."
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Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2009/03/23/daily42.html
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