Third LDS temple announced for East Valley

Queen Creek has been selected as the location of one of 17 new Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints temples that will be built around the country and the world.

The announcement of the new temples was made on Sunday by LDS President Russell M. Nelson during the concluding session of the church’s October 2024 general conference.

The Queen Creek temple will be the third in the East Valley.

"The East Valley and Queen Creek in particular have seen an influx of people in recent years who are very family oriented," said Jason Bagley, president of the Queen Creek North Stake. "Many of them are also members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For them, temple worship is an integral part of their faith."

The Queen Creek temple will be the eighth in Arizona and join three other LDS temples in the Valley in Gilbert, Mesa and Phoenix. Three temples are in Snowflake, the Gila Valley and Tucson, with the one in Yuma just announced in April.

“I believe that Queen Creek being selected for a new temple is a reflection of the beautiful, family oriented place that so many have worked so long and hard to (create),” said Queen Creek Council Member Jeff Brown.

Mesa has the oldest LDS temple. It was announced in 1919, dedicated in 1927 and most recently rededicated in 2021.

The Phoenix and Gilbert temples were announced in 2008 and dedicated in 2014.

"Although we still don't have a timeline on the (Queen Creek) temple's construction, it will certainly have a positive economic impact to the community," Bagley said.

Brown added that while the economic impact of a temple is difficult to economically quantify for a community “like any unique and exceptional new building, they can and often do bring ancillary economic benefits to a community in terms of maintenance of property values and additional investment by folks wishing to locate businesses in proximity.”

“All of the temples I’ve seen are architecturally beautiful. The grounds and gardens are by design a focal point of peace. They inevitably become a landmark in the communities they are built,” Brown said. “People like to live by beautiful places and like to have beautiful things in their community.”

There are nearly 443,000 Latter-day Saints in Arizona in around 925 congregations, a church release stated.

Queen Creek was among the seven new temples announced for the U.S. The other six temples will be located in:

• Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
• El Paso, Texas
• Huntsville, Alabama
• Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• Summit, New Jersey
• Price, Utah

Internationally, 10 new temples will be built in Mexico, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Chile, Ireland, Italy, Nigeria, Uganda and Mozambique.

"Members of the church believe that God’s kingdom is organized around the family. It is within the temple where priesthood ordinances are performed to create eternal families," Bagley said. "For this reason, a temple represents the opportunity for members to fulfill the purpose of why they follow Jesus Christ."

We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org. Janet Perez can be reached at jperez@iniusa.org.