New Life buys new building for expansion

CORALVILLE - New Life Community Church is bringing new life to an old hardware store located on the Coralville strip. The church recently purchased the vacant building and plans to remodel it and relocate there soon. The church is now located at 106 Second Ave. The move to 1703 Second St., will offer the church a more visible and accessible location. It will also gain additional space for growth. The current church is 8,900 square feet and the new facility has 15,000 square feet and opportunity for future expansion beyond that.

'New Life Community Church began in Coralville in the mid-1990s and has remained here ever since,” said pastor Paul Smith in a press release announcing the purchase. 'For a while, we considered moving to a lot south of Iowa City. However, we then decided that our connections in Coralville and with the neighboring communities were too valuable to give up. We felt called to stay in the city and continue growing our diverse congregation here. We have been searching for property in Coralville and are grateful to have found this new location.”

General Construction Services of Coralville has been hired to do the renovation of the building. Vantage Point Architectural Services of Cedar Rapids out of Cedar Rapids is the architect. The church hopes to move into its new space in six months.

New Life Community Church is involved with and supports many community organizations, including the Coralville Ecumenical Food Pantry, Iowa City Free Lunch program, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Run for the Schools, and several others. Additionally, they host an annual free Vacation Bible School for grade school children, reaching more than 100 kids each summer.