Escrow Expires in Chatsworth : Moody Church’s Move to West Valley Put on Hold

The on-gain, off-again plan of the First Baptist Church of Van Nuys to move to an exclusive Chatsworth neighborhood is off again--at least for now.

The Rev. Jess Moody, senior pastor of the 10,000-member church, said Monday that escrow expired last month on a 12-acre site in the Monteria Estates community that the church sought to buy. Under terms of the escrow, the church will lose its $50,000 down payment on the land, Moody said.

Although the church is leaving open the possibility of reopening negotiations for the property, “it is probably not where we’re going to go,” he said.

But the church is still intent on moving into the West San Fernando Valley, Moody said.

“We’re just casting about now, trying to find another place,” he said. “We don’t have anything that has come into sharp focus.”

The church decided to shift direction because of community opposition, the pastor said.

Monteria Estates homeowners, including former television newscaster Christine Lund and Bernard Gelson, co-founder of Gelson’s Markets, opposed the move after Moody announced his plans in September. They contended that construction of a large church in their neighborhood would harm the environment, lower property values and clog streets with traffic.

Los Angeles City Councilman Hal Bernson, whose district includes Chatsworth, said he supports the move of the church to the West Valley “provided it’s the right location.”

Bernson originally said he would support the relocation to Monteria Estates if a majority of nearby homeowners agreed to it. But he announced his opposition in November, after his office was deluged with telephone calls and letters and after Monteria Estates homeowners voted 41 to 1 against the church’s proposal.

Moody announced the plan to move his congregation in a Sept. 1 church newsletter, saying he wanted to keep the West Valley out of “Satan’s grip.”