Note: A brief version of this post, covering the announcement, was published at 1:55 PM, with additional analysis and details added between 6:00-10:00 PM (with the delay in providing these updates due to Halloween night.).
Hello again, everyone! On this Monday, major temple news has been announced by the Church. Site locations and preliminary information were released for the Mexico City Benemerito and San Luis Potosi Mexico Temples, the Sao Paulo East Brazil Temple, and the Fort WorthTexas, Knoxville Tennessee, and Tampa Florida Temples. Additionally, the exterior rendering was also released for the Fort Worth Texas Temple. A more detailed analysis of this announcement will follow later this afternoon as time and circumstances allow. For now, my thanks once again to you all.
After a busy day in which I had other priorities to handle, I am finally returning this Halloween evening here in Utah to provide the updated analysis I promised. So let's get right into it: We start in Mexico, with the Mexico City Benemerito Mexico and San Luis Potosi Mexico Temple, which were both announced in April of this year.
The Mexico City Benemerito Mexico Temple will be built near the existing MTC in Mexico City. The address of the site in question is Tenayuca-Chalmita 828, Col. Zona Escolar, Gustavo A. Madero, Ciudad de México, CP 07230, Mexico. The acreage of the site in question was not provided, but the site will hold a two-story temple of approximately 29,000 square feet. It's also worth noting that this is the first "second temple" in a major capital city for which the official name and region were already specified as part of the announcement.
As for the San Luis Potosi Mexico Temple, the single-story 9,300 square foot edifice will be built at Arboleda 100, Fraccionamiento del Parque, San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí, CP 78260, Mexico, on a 3.87 acre site. Given the size specified, I think we might see a similar design for that temple that has been used for the Yigo Guam, Praia Cape Verde, and San Juan Puerto Rico Temples, particularly with the two ordinance rooms that can alternately be used for endowment sessions or sealing appointments as the schedule requires.
That brings us to the Sao Paulo East Brazil Temple. A comment left on this post by longtime contributor Kenny correctly noted we did not get an official name fandor this temple with today's announcement. But we got a site announcement and released rendering for the second temple in Guatemala City Guatemala first, with the confirmation of the official name coming later, and the groundbreaking scheduled after that. So I think similar situation could apply to the Sao Paulo East Brazil Temmple. It's also a fair observation that the official name for the second Sao Paulo Brazil Temple could be posted to the Church's official list of announced temples at some point before the official confirmation from the Church, which also happened with the second Guatemala City temple. Stay tuned for more on that.
In the meantime, as for the details about the temple, it was announced in October of 2020. The approximatelyy 46,050 square foot two-story temple will rise on a 10.7 acre site at the location of Av. Guilherme Giorgi, 1091, Vila Carrão São Paulo - SP, Brazil. Based on the location, I could see the Church giving it the official name of Vila Carrão São Paulo Brazil, ila Carrão Brazil, or the name of any of the stakes or landmarks in that region, with or without the city designation. The Church may also use any Spanish or Portuguese word, as they did with the Miraflores name for the second Guatemala City Temple.
In any case, given the fact that we have a Brazilian native in Elder Soares as an apostle, I assume that the First Presidency and Temple and Family History Executive Council asked for his opinion on the location, and may give him the prerogative of suggesting the official name, as they did with Elder Holland and the second temple in St. George. The second temple in that city was one of only two left in the queue that was originally announced in October 2020.
That brings us to the 3 temples in the United States. As mentioned in my initial version of this post, the exterior rendering for the Fort Worth Texas Temple was released with the site information, pushing that temple higher on the list of those likely to see groundbreakings soon than its' two US counterparts which also had locations and initial details confirmed today, and also ahead of the Modesto California and Singapore Temples, which had sites confirmed without a release of exterior renderings three weeks ago today.
The Fort Worth Texas Temple will be built in nearby Burleson Texas, on a 9.37-acre site located North of SW Hulen Street and Greenridge Drive in that city and will be a single-story temple of 30,000 square feet. Hopefully, the release of a rendering with the site location means we could see a groundbreaking follow in the early months of next year, if not sooner.
The Fort Worth Texas Temple is the second of the four US Temples announced in October 2021. The other two US temples were both announced in April of this year. Interestingly, the site locations for the Knoxville Tennessee and Tampa Florida Temples were revealed in the opposite order in which they were announced. So wnoe start with Tennessee's third temple, which will rise on a 4.99-acre site at 13001 Kington Pike, Farragut, Tennessee, where the Church will build a single-story temple of 30,000 square feet.
And the newest temple for Florida will be the same size as Knoxville and will be built adjacent to an existing meetinghouse on a 16.2-acre site at 4806 Bell Shoals Road, in Valrico, Florida. Given the fact that the three US temples are the same size, I wouldn't be shocked if both the Knoxville and Tampa temples have similar or identical designs as the Fort Worth Texas Temple.
It's also worth noting that none of the three US temples are actually going to physically be located in the cities for which they are named, which is kind of unique. I have some additional thoughts to share about today's announcements. For the first time in over a year, I have updated the document showing updated sections of my temple construction progress report.
The sections in question show the 4 temples with groundbreakings scheduled, the now-16 temples for which I think groundbreakings could all occur at some point next year, the 6 temples for awhich official details might soon be confirmed, and the now-9 temples in the United States announced in October of last year and the two General Conferences this year which might have details confirmed sooner than their remaining 37 counterparts outside the United States.
Additionally, I have updated the list of announced temples for which no official information has been confirmed yet. That list now reflects the 2 temples originally announced in April 2018, one apiece from the next 2 General Conferences, 3 from April 2020, 1 from October of that same year, 5 and 9 respectively from April and October of last year, and 11 and 18 from the 35 announced in April and October of this year, respectively.
And as a result of today's announcement, with 72 temples announced, the total number of temples that have not had any information announced comes to 51. I fully believe that there will be other announcements relating to some of those 51 in the coming weeks. Before I conclude this post, I wanted to also address some comments that have been left here recently which have expressed hope that the Church might soon announce the open houses and rededication for the Columbus Ohio Temple and the dedications of other temples nearing completion.
Based on some research on my end, it seems most likely that the reopening arrangements for Columbus will be coming next, and when that is set, it could happen on the last Sunday in February or the first two Sundays in March. The dedications of the temples in Saratoga Springs Utah (to which I will be assigned once it is dedicated), Richmond Virginia, and Bangkok Thailand would then follow later in March or April. And the dedications of other temples would be after that.
My revised estimates come as a result of receiving word of supply chain delays that will delay the finishing touches on these temples, and the revised estimates are made with that in mind. That being said, at some point, if the supply shortages are addressed and sufficiently resolved, that could accelerate the timeline for temple open houses and their associated dedications or rededications. For now, it seems more prudent to be more conservative in those estimates.
I continue to monitor all temple construction updates, in addition to all Church News, Newsroom, and other reports and will do my best to continue to bring you word of those developments as they cross my radar. In the meantime, that does it for now. Thank you for the privilege of your time. All comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as the offered feedback is made per the established guidelines.
I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
