Hello again, everyone! The Newsroom just shared this announcement from the First Presidency: a groundbreaking ceremony for the Cuernavaca Mexico Temple, and preliminary details for the Otavalo Ecuador Temple. Let's get right into those updates: The groundbreaking ceremony for the Cuernavaca Mexico Temple will take place on Saturday, November 14, 2026, under the presiding direction of Elder Moises Villanueva.
The groundbreaking announcement for this temple follows its' October 2022 announcement, and its' location and rendering in mid-December 2024. This latest announced groundbreaking will be the second one set to take place on November 14, the other being the Piura Peru Temple. Given the fact that Piura time is 1 hour ahead of Cuernavaca time year-round, the earlier announced groundbreaking will take place before this newest one in Mexico.
Today's announcement moves down the La Paz Bolivia Temple groundbreaking, and there are now a total of 22 scheduled to occur this year, vs. the 21 we had last year. And there are plenty of Saturdays left in November and December on which the Church could hold other groundbreakings, so we are likely to see more announced to take place before the end of this year.
Let's now move on to the details released about the Otovalo Ecuador Temple, which was just announced at the end of this year.. Before I get into the details, it's worth noting that the temples announced by President Oaks' First Presidency may be further along in the approvals process than their Nelsonian counterparts, which is why we may have this new on the Church's most recently announced temple before we hear about temples that were announced longer ago by President Nelson.
With that in mind, here are the details for the Otavalo Ecuador Temple, per the official news release previously cited: "The Otavalo Ecuador Temple will be built on a 6.05-acre site at the corner of Calle Bolívar and Calle Abya Yala in Otavalo, Imbabura Province, Ecuador. Plans call for a temple of approximately 18,850 square feet."
With the site location and parameters already announced, hopefully a rendering and groundbreaking will follow swiftly. I have updated my list of announced temples for which no official information has been released yet, and I hope that information proves to be helpful to all who view it. invite you all to stay tuned here for my coverage of the latest updates from the Church News, Newsroom, and Church of Jesus Christ Temples sites. I’ll be sure to pass word of those along to you all as soon as I learn about them. In the meantime, that does it for now. All comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated on any post at any time, as long as all such 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 liked what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added posts and comments, please subscribe to receive the applicable updates. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
The Church News has shared their coverage of the Cuernavaca groundbreaking and Otavalo information. Unrelated to temple news, the latest edition of the Church News podcast takes us back to the president of the Grand-Blanc Michigan stake, 1 year after the violent attack on the meetinghouse in that city, which was the target of a shooter and arsonist, My thanks once again to you all.
ReplyDeleteThe Newsroom also covered the Grand Blanc Michigan chapel dedication, in addition to providing a preview for the October 2026 World Report. I look forward to seeing that during General Conference weekend. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteIt’s interesting how fast Otavio received a site announcement shortly after being announced a few months ago.
ReplyDeleteIt certainly is, Scooter, and it could be the start of a new pattern wherein the Church will only announce temples if sites are already procured for them. I look forward to seeing how quickly we subsequently get this temple's rendering and a groundbreaking announcement. It could be a real game-changer for the temple construction program. Thanks for taking time to comment, Scooter. I always appreciate hearing from you.
Delete5 more groundbreakings needed to get to 300 in operation, under renovation, or under construction. 300 dedicated temples by the bicentennial date may not be possible, but it could still be reached by the end of 2030.
ReplyDeleteYour math is correct, Noah. If the Church can hold 5 more groundbreakings, that would indeed be 300 temples, either operating or else in varying stages of construction. Getting the remaining temples dedicated by sometime in 2030 might also still be feasible, as you've stated. But we only have 3 2027 dedications set so far, and they've been scheduled to occur from January at the earliest to mid-April. I am hopeful that some of the smaller completed or nearly completed temples will fill the gaps on that schedule, but that's not a guarantee just yet. And I also know that the Church can double-, triple-, or even quadruple-up temple dedications to occur on the same date, as we've seen occur recently.
DeleteBut I also know that some temples move up in the queue faster than others. The Bengaluru India Temple is a prime example of something unexpected that holds up construction for years. We are also seeing the Church postpone announcing the next steps for temples if there are legal challenges, such as those for the temple in Heber Valley, Utah.
It has also been interesting to see the queue shifting the way it has. I hope my assessment is wrong and that we do reach 300 operating temples (or more) by any point in 2030, but it will be interesting to see what happens with all of that. Come to think of it, if 2027 can be like 2026 (with a dedication count of 22-25), and if that can continue over the next couple of years following that (2028 and 2029), it might be more feasible than my above assessment suggests.
Thanks for weighing in again on this, Noah. I appreciate your comments, particularly those for which you contribute to multiple threads and subthreads here. I'm thinking what I might do is reassess re-adding that note to my construction progress report, perhaps for the end of 2026. Bringing that note back again towards the end of the year would be a joyful thrill for me. Again, thanks. I always appreciate hearing from you. If, for any of these threads, you'd like to add any additional thoughts you might have on this or any other subject, I'm always happy to hear from you and reply to you again.
Among the next 5 groundbreakings to be scheduled, I think Lehi Utah, Osaka Japan, Florianópolis Brazil, Buenos Aires City Center Argentina, and Sunnyvale California are the most likely. The first 3 have site preparations underway, and the latter 2 were recently approved by their local governments. Viña del Mar Chile is also possible, but we haven't heard anything since the meetinghouse closed for demolition several months ago.
ReplyDeleteHey, Noah! I concur with your list for the most part. Lehi has been at or near the top of my personal list for a potential groundbreaking for at least the last 15 months, because when that temple is constructed and dedicated, it will be our temple and will be just a short drive away. I certainly hope we can still see that temple have a groundbreaking before the end of this year, but I also have some intel on other temples for which the prospects might be more imminent. Osaka sits at the top of my current list, because other temples with a similar status have recently had groundbreakings set to occur before groundbreakings were held for any of those other temples.
DeleteThe same holds true for the Tuguegarao City and Santiago Philippines Temples, both of which now note essentially the same thing: for the former, preliminary site work is underway, while for the latter, a construction fence is being erected, and crews are preparing for preliminary site work.Those preliminary efforts in the Philippines are usually done fairly quickly, as the island nations comprising the Philipines generally warmly welthe construction of each new temple. So I'd throw in those prospects as additions to your list. I'd put Lehi and its' counterparts in Westt Jordan and Spanish Fork in the next three slots in that queue.
The only question in my mind is, how many other temples are actually likely to have groundbreakings set to occur before the end of this year. Many of those on both of our lists may go on to construction, but a few may be deferred until next year. And, as always, it's possible the Church has a behind--the-scenes effort to get others approved for a groundbreaking before any or all of those we listed.
None of the 7 currently scheduled groundbreakings were on my radar to have their groundbreakings this soon. I had put all of them in the queue for starting construction with a groundbreaking only next year or the year after that. All this talk about temple construction convinces me that the Lord can, does, and will continue to surprise us. And I admittedly do not have any inside information to support any of my assertions.
I was, of course, aware of the information about the Florianopolis Brazil Temple, but I hadn't heard the updates about the Buenos Aires City Center Argentina and Simmyvale Calirornia Temples. I guess I will need to catch up on some temple construction developments this evening. Thanks, Noah, for this additional comment. If you have any other isngiths to share about this or any other subject covered recently on this blog, I hope you'll feel inclined to seighin again. You've given me much food for thought, and I appreciate you!
Yesterday, the Newsroom shared two updates that I may not have passed along here. That brings us to today's coverage of Church News developments: first and foremost, two new couples will begin serving as temple leaders in the coming months: the first couple will serve in the new Queretaro Mexico Temple, and the other couple will serve in the Orlando Florida Temple. This may suggest that the completion of construction for these temples may occur sooner than anticipated. I'll be interested to see if anything else occurs with the temple queue as a result of this development.
ReplyDeleteThe Church News has set up a homepage for General Conference coverage this weekend, and the Church and several other organizations were honored for interfaith efforts and charitable works. My thanks once again to you all,
I failed to mention yesterday that I have added these two temples to my document tracking the temples for which new leaders have been announced this year. That total now rises to 60, which is unusual, given that the number in question is lower than it typically has been. I have made a corresponding list for 2027, and, including both currently operating and new temples, that list has 113 temples for which new leaders might be called. Just wanted to post that clarification.
DeleteIn addition, the Church News has shared a report on the vital role of disability specialists and how the new disability activity program ministers to the one, with examples from Nevada, Ohio, and Utah. And from the Newsroom comes this summary page for session summaries, news, and announcements. Additionally, the October 2026 edition of the Church's semiannual World Report is now available for on-demand streaming.
My thanks once again to you all.
I just now realized that, in my comment atop of this subthread, I never shared the associated link. to the first report I mentioned. My apologies for that oversight, and my thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAnd additional reports have been shared: the institute program is celebrating its' 100th anniversary; how a completion became a collaboration for 8 global humanitarian organizations; survivors of the Church shooting at Grand Blanc Michigan reflected on their experiences, regrets, and memories pertaining to that eventful day; and a sneak peek at the October 2026 World Report. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAnd Relief Society General President Camille N.Johnson recently toured humanitarian sites in Eastern Idaho.as part of a 3-day ministry trip. My thanks once again to you all.
Delete