Fort Collins Colorado Temple

Thomas S. Monson, President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, announced plans to build the Fort Collins Colorado Temple on 2 April 2011 during the 181st Annual General Conference of the Church. Fort Collins, Colorado is located 57 miles north of Denver, Colorado. The first Latter-day Saint congregation in Colorado was organized in January 1897, one year after a mission was established in the area. Several Church immigrants settled communities in Conejos County, Manassa, Richfield, and Sanford. Today there are approximately 140,000 members residing in the state. In 1911, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, based in Utah, toured Colorado. When the temple is complete, it will be the second Mormon temple in Colorado, following the Denver Colorado Temple, dedicated in 1986.

Temple Site

The Fort Collins Colorado Temple, located on the southeast corner of the intersection at Trilby Road and Timberline Road, across the street from a Latter-day Saint chapel in Fort Collins, is 30,389 square feet, situated on 15.69 acres, and is similar in design to the Newport Beach California Temple. The temple will serve approximately 44,000 members of the Church in northern Colorado, southern Wyoming and western Nebraska who currently travel to the Denver Colorado Temple and Billings Montana Temple to enjoy temple worship. President Russell McClure of the Fort Collins Colorado Stake said, "We appreciate the many people from Fort Collins who have worked with us during the site selection process. We feel this new temple will be a great asset not only to members of the Church in Colorado and the region, but also to the people of Fort Collins, who will benefit from the peace and beauty a temple brings."

Groundbreaking Ceremony

Ground for the Fort Collins Colorado Temple was broken on Saturday, 24 August 2013, in a ceremony that was presided over by Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Presidency of the Seventy. Civic and community leaders were also ptrdrn at the ceremony. In his remarks, Elder Rasband discussed the history of temples in antiquity, drawing parallels to temples constructed in modern times. He stated, "In the dedication of Solomon's temple, King Solomon asked 'Will God dwell on the earth?' The Lord answered 'My name shall be there.' That sounds familiar to what we're starting here in Fort Collins, Colorado. When the temple is completed, it will be a house of prayer, of revelation, of learning and instruction."

The groundbreaking ceremony was broadcast to Latter-day Saint meetinghouses in northern Colorado and southern Wyoming. A choir of 45 Church members from Fort Collins, Loveland and Greeley, Colorado sang for the event.

Open House Dates Announced

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced that an open house for the Fort Collins Colorado Temple will be held from Friday, 19 August 2016, through Saturday, 10 September 2016, except for the Sundays of 21 August, 28 August, and 4 September 2016.

The general public, including children of all ages, is invited to attend an open house. Admission is free, but reservations are requested. Open house tickets for the Fort Collins Colorado Temple will be available 11 July 2016 at 10 a.m. MDT. Those interested in attending the open house are asked to dress modestly. It is also recommended that attendees arrive early to allow time for traffic and parking. Parking attendants will guide people to an available parking space.

Open house tours begin with a short video presentation providing an overview of temples and why they are significant to members of the Church. Following the video, a tour host will escort visitors through the temple, explaining the purpose of each room and answering questions as time allows. At the conclusion of the tour, visitors are invited to a reception area to have any further questions answered.

Cultural Celebration and Temple Dedication

The cultural celebration will be held Saturday, 15 October 2016.

The Fort Collins Colorado Temple will be dedicated on Sunday, 16 October 2016, in three sessions - 9:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. The dedication will be broadcast to members of the Church in Colorado and in the Fort Collins Temple district. The three-hour block of meetings will be cancelled for that Sunday.

Once the temple is dedicated, only those who hold a temple recommend and follow certain standards of the gospel of Jesus Christ will be allowed to enter the temple.

External Links

• Fort Collins Colorado Temple on Mormon Temples
• Fort Collins Colorado Temple dedication announced
• Mormon Temples: A Coversation with a Church Leader video presentation