Announcement of the Wichita Kansas Temple
President Russell M. Nelson, 17th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, announced the Wichita Kansas Temple on April 3, 2022, during the Sunday afternoon session of April 2022 general conference. A house of the Lord for this south-central Kansas city was among 17 temples announced worldwide that day — and the first for the Sunflower State.
For Debra Acevedo of the Hutchinson Ward, Wichita Kansas Stake, a temple will “be a great blessing” — especially for a member who was doing family history research before joining the Church.
“As the first member in my family to become a member of the Church, I’ve been doing genealogy for years even before becoming a member,” Acevedo said. “That’s what brought me into the Church, the genealogy. I love to go to the temple and do the work for my ancestors.”
Andrew Allen — a fellow Kansan and member of the Leavenworth 2nd Ward, Platte City Kansas Stake — was equally shocked but joyful. “I feel so happy that there [will be] a temple close to people who have had to travel far distances. It really shows that God’s Church is moving along the right path.”
Timeline of the Wichita Kansas Temple
The Wichita Kansas Temple was announced by Church President Russell M. Nelson on April 3, 2022. On Sept. 7, 2024, Ground will be broken for the house of the Lord, with Elder Steven R. Bangerter, a General Authority Seventy and first counselor in the North America Central Area presidency, presiding.
Architecture and Design of the Wichita Kansas Temple
According to site plans released by the Church on June 20, 2023, the Wichita Kansas Temple will be a single-story building of approximately 9,950 square feet. The edifice will stand on a 6.42-acre site at Lot 1 Block 1 of The Moorings Plaza Fourth Addition in Wichita, Sedgwick County, Kansas.
An architectural rendering of the Wichita Kansas Temple released on July 22, 2024, shows rectangular windows surrounding an arched entrance. A central tower with rectangular windows stands above the center of the building. Trees, flower beds and bushes adorn the grounds.