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Church seeks to blend religion, retail
WASILLA - A Wasilla church is working to bring its burgeoning house of worship into one of the hottest commercial districts in the Mat-Su, known as the "million-dollar mile."

Crossroads Community Church is trying to finalize a deal by this summer to purchase Cottonwood Creek Mall, across the street from Fred Meyer, where it plans to hold massive Sunday services while running the rest of the mall as a retail hot-spot.

The purchase is not yet complete but the church has already put earnest money down and is moving fast to close the deal.

While church leaders are excited about the prospects of weaving religion into a prime business area, the idea has so far received mixed reviews from mall vendors. Many have a wait-and-see attitude.

"We don't know what it will be like; that's the big question," said Steve Hickok, who co-owns Alaska Charm with his wife, Terri Hickok. "I can't prejudge. We're just going to have to wait and see what happens."

Sam Richardson, owner of Sammy's Pizza, said he has no problem with a church owning the mall.

"It will be nice to have local owners in the mall," he said. "I just hope it starts bringing people back into the mall."...

...Wick wouldn't say exactly what the church is paying for the mall, but Mat-Su Borough Assessor Allen Black said the 250,000-square-foot property is valued at $14.8 million and includes the land on which Taco Bell and Wells Fargo Bank are located.

Currently, 21 businesses operate within the mall. If the finances work out, the church will soon join them. The church's 1,200 worshipers now meet Sundays in the Teeland Middle School gymnasium.

Pam Ockerlander, manager of Waldenbooks, is a little leery about the prospect of renting from a church. Ever since the mall first opened, in 1984, Waldenbooks has been there. Ockerlander, who's managed the store for 19 years said she hopes to stay but worries about what a business relationship with a church might look like.

"We're a bookstore and we sell lots of different things that the church might not approve of," Ockerlander said. "What happens when our lease expires? I would hate to see us close because we lost our spot in the mall."

Wick said the church wants to keep the mall as a mainstream commercial building and has no plans to fill the mall with primarily Christian stores. The church wants to see at least one more anchor store - such as Barnes & Noble, Best Buy or The Sports Authority - to help increase foot traffic.

"We're excited about being shoulder to shoulder with the community," Wick said. "Obviously with the church, we probably don't want a liquor store, but if there's a restaurant that wants to come into a back pad and serve liquor, I don't think we would have a problem with that."...