Sometimes the start of something is in some ways better than reaching the end.

That’s how Tiffany Holland, executive pastor at Covington Christian Fellowship, feels now that the church has completed the first phase of its construction project.

“The groundbreaking was almost better than the finale for us,” Holland said. “We began in October. A lot of the tough construction was done during the cold winter months.”

Don’t misunderstand, however, the significance of completing the project,  which the church celebrated with a ribbon cutting on July 21. Work was done in early June.

CCF’s building is 35 years old and there were no major improvements since it was built, Holland explained, so the project was important for the members.

And it’s a project Holland has overseen for more than six years.

Donovan Bros. did the construction work, the same company that is building a new church home for CCF’s neighbors, Mountain Vineyard Christian Fellowship.

“Donovan Bros. was amazing to work with,” Holland said. “They became like family.”

In fact, some of the women from the church made lunch for the crew every Friday.

While that aspect of the $2.8 million project to renovate the building was easy there were definitely challenges.

“We did a design-build process that included our architect and builder,” Holland said. “We meet weekly to assess if we were on track. Things changed, they ebbed and flowed really, every week. We started out with Plan A… and Plan P is where we ended up.”

Changes to the project required certain aspects had to be cut, Holland noted, due to budget constraints. The church raised most of the money for the project through the sale of its property where Covington Esplinade now sits. The rest was raised through a capital campaign.

“Because we sold our property over on Kent Kangley we were able to do our project mostly debt-free,” Holland said. “Over the next two and a half years we’ll be raising funds and continually moving on.”

There was significant support from the community, as well, Holland said. Lakeside Industries picked up the cost of paving the parking lot while Donovan Bros. paid for the exterior paint, just to offer a couple of examples.

Planning began on the project more than a decade ago. Initially church leaders considered building on the site where Home Depot now sits.

Instead, the church spent five or six years preparing the other chunk of land for sale, and Ashton Development purchased it so it would eventually be the site of Covington Esplanade which is where Home Depot — which opened in 2008 — is located along with Red Robin, a Verizon Wireless store, Mizu Japanese Steakhouse, UTop-It, and the International House of Pancakes, among other businesses.

This first phase will include a significant focus on space for children’s and youth programs, with the addition of a 100 seat auditorium planned, nursery space and a day care.

But, Holland added, there is more to come.

“When we first began working with (architect) BCRA we began dreamcasting a long term plan for a multi-service community center,” she said. “The purpose for that would be to collaborate with other organizations providing services in one centralized location. Our next phase will be an income producing piece of property with offices or medical office. Our big picture for our church is to be a church in the marketplace… in the community.”

Those plans include having mixed use buildings on the property, a new church building and a new building for The Storehouse food bank.

Though the building may have changed and will continue to change, Holland said, the church’s purpose has not changed since it began 35 years ago.

“Back then they were building a facility for names they didn’t know and faces they hadn’t seen,” Holland said. “So, we’re doing this not just for our church now but for names we don’t know and faces we haven’t seen. Our focus will to always be a safe place where people feel at home.”

Whether the church is at the start of something or the end.