Our Site Vision

In Fall 2023, the Site Visioning Team (SVT) was tasked with discerning the vision of the Chalice community and determining whether buying the Sanctuary fit the vision and needs, or whether Chalice should look for a new home.

Based on interactive meetings over a six-month period, Chalice members recognize that our current home has a number of positive features. It is within the boundaries of our ideal location, it has adequate parking and an esthetically pleasing Sanctuary. It is, however, missing three important elements that the membership values and would like to have in a future location:

Room to grow to meet our congregational needs and space to host joint community service work with other like-minded non-profits in fulfillment of our UU mission.
Versatile outdoor environments for gatherings of the whole congregation, dedicated children’s play spaces, meditation and tranquility gardens, and plots for garden projects.
Improved visibility in the community with larger permanent signage and the capability to host community activities on the property with event-related temporary signage.

In June of this year, as a congregation, we voted to authorize the Board, guided by the Site Visioning Team, to pursue the possibility of selling Fellowship Hall and moving to another location that has more opportunity for growth, outside space and better visibility.

This is your home, and your voice matters. It will take a village to reach everyone, to listen to all voices and to learn and discern in these next months.

May we be gentle, kind and listen deeply to one another throughout this process.

Why are we doing this?

As many of you may know we own Fellowship Hall and lease the Sanctuary from a group called the Old Conejo Road (OCR). This lease will be up in June of 2024, and we know that the OCR will want to sell the building. The question upon us all is: Do we purchase the Sanctuary, or do we sell our building (Fellowship Hall) and move to a new location, or some creative idea we’ve yet to explore? This is not an easy decision and is sure to take time, conversations, and research. We hope to spend the next year in discernment, and we hope you will join us!

Who is leading this?

Our site visioning team has been restructured into two strong teams more able to focus their work and they each meet twice a month.

Search Team: led by Ellen Smith, Andy Pletcher, and Claudia Barton with Matt Chapa, Sandi Boyd, Brian Pletcher, Spencer Pletcher, Scott Ellison, David Barker, Merlin Snider, and Floyd Martin as team members. Their goal is to search for properties, work with a realtor, and explore other pathways to finding a home including the possibility of purchasing the sanctuary or renting a temporary home.
Finance Team: led by Randy Slentz, Peter Schlaus, and Don Cooper with Sandi Boyd and Matt Chapa as team members and Frances Pardee as needed doing her magic in the background. Their goal is to establish pre-qualification, secure a loan and explore alternative financing.
Leaders of each team form a leaders group: Randy, Don, Peter, Ellen Claudia, Andy, Matt, Rev Nica, and Annie Barker. Their role is to connect the two groups, track and present to the board as they progress and decisions need to be made.

The board held its board retreat and this year we invited COSM (Council on Shared Ministry) and the leaders of the search and finance teams and together we welcomed Randy as OUR captain of the ship. He brings his professional skills in project management, he will lead us, keep us on track, make decisions, complete tasks and basically steer our ship!!!

Are we definitely moving?

No. We have voted to look for a potential home, but that does not mean we are definitely moving. We are simply exploring our options. Financially both options are similar.

What are we looking for in a new home?

Our potential new home should meet at least two of the three major desirable attributes discerned by the Fellowship members in communication with the Site Visioning Team: