Building Pollicy

Guidelines for Scheduling Buildings
And Policies for Building Use
North Ogden Utah Stake - April 10, 2008

Listed below are excerpts of policies from the Church General Handbook of Instructions, along with our local guidelines for scheduling buildings and for building use in the North Ogden Utah Stake.

Stake Pavilion
The Stake Pavilion (Bowery) is not available on Sundays or after 6:00 PM on Mondays.

Priorities in Scheduling Buildings
Buildings should be scheduled according to the following priorities:

The Ward (e.g., Sunday Block Times, Relief Society, and Mutual) and Stake (e.g., Stake Leadership, Conferences, Baptisms, and Sports) items that are set for the entire year should be scheduled first then the following guidelines should be followed;

Funerals take immediate precedence and have highest priority
General Church activities have next highest priority.
- No stake, ward, or private use of buildings may be scheduled when there is a General Church fireside, devotional, leadership training meeting, or other activity scheduled in that building.
Stake activities have next priority.
- No ward or private use of buildings may be scheduled when there is a Stake (or General Church) activity already scheduled (or that should be scheduled) in that building.
Ward activities have next priority.
- No private use of buildings may be scheduled when there is a Ward, Stake, or General Church activity already scheduled in that building.
Private use is the last priority, such as weddings, family parties, and family reunions.
Activities not included above or that may be contrary to Church policies, such as study groups, are not allowed without permission of the Stake Presidency

Scheduling Requirements

Persons submitting activities to be scheduled must indicate the organization requesting the building, the date(s) needed, and the rooms/area required. They must also include in their request a contact person and phone number, in order to receive approval. These information items should also be in the details on their request.

Regular Weeknight Activities (Mutual, Relief Society, Pack Meetings)

Wards should put regularly scheduled activities such as Mutual, Relief Society, Primary Activity Days, Pack Meetings, and other events on the (internet) ward calendar, and reserve building times for these events in the Resources section of the ward and stake web site. They should not merely assume that the building is theirs.

Monday Nights

“Monday nights are reserved for family home evening throughout the Church. Leaders ensure that Church buildings and facilities are closed on Monday nights. No Church activities, meetings, games, or practices should be held after 6:00 PM on Mondays. Exceptions may only be made when New Year’s Eve is on a Monday.” (General Handbook of Instructions, p. 278)

Personal Use

Individuals and families may schedule a church building or portion thereof if no other stake, ward, or general Church activity is already scheduled for the time requested. Individuals or groups may not routinely schedule a building for multiple or extended dates without prior approval of the Stake Presidency.

Family dinners after church. - the church buildings are for the members, and yet also remember that this is the House of the Lord.

They clear this first both with their bishop and by scheduling it correctly (calendar and facility)
It is after the ward meeting in the building, and thus do not interfere with any ward still meeting for Sacrament Meeting other meetings
They don’t cook food in the oven, but instead merely briefly re-warm it
They keep it reverent and fairly quiet, remembering it is the Sabbath (no bouncing basketballs, etc.)
And they clean up after themselves properly

Closing Time for Buildings

The general closing time of buildings is 10:30 PM. Special dances and other specially scheduled stake or ward activities, approved by the stake president or bishop, may end at 11:30 PM. Groups or Individuals should not be in the buildings past 10:30 PM to play basketball or other sports.

Stake Baptisms

No other event may be scheduled in the Stake Center during the afternoon and early evening of Stake Baptisms.

Wedding Receptions

The three buildings in the North Ogden Stake may be reserved for wedding receptions by families who reside in our stake. Buildings may not be reserved by persons who live outside the stake boundaries. There is no charge for reserving or using buildings for a reception. However, all areas used in the building should be left clean after use for a reception.

Receptions may not be scheduled in a building if there is already a stake, ward, or general Church activity scheduled there for that day.

Funerals

Funerals take priority over other meetings or activities. Bishops should promptly schedule the meetinghouse and inform the building scheduler. “Priesthood leaders are responsible for seeing that the meetinghouse is prepared for funerals. It should be open and available to funeral directors at least one hour before the scheduled time for the viewing and funeral. The meetinghouse needs to be clean and brought to appropriate temperature and light levels.” (General Handbook of Instructions, p. 58. Also, see other comments on this topic on that page.)

New Year’s Eve Parties on Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays

No New Year’s Eve parties or dances may be scheduled on Sundays. When New Year’s Eve falls on a Saturday or Monday, please refer to the General Handbook of Instructions (p. 278).

Other Policies on Using Church Buildings and Property

“Church buildings and other property are to be used for worship, religious instruction, and other Church-related activities. Church property should not be use for commercial or political purposes, which would violate laws that permit its tax exemption. Examples of uses that are not approved are listed below:

Renting or leasing Church facilities for commercial purposes.
Promoting business ventures or investment enterprises, including posting commercial advertising or sponsoring commercial entertainment.
Buying, selling, or promoting products, services, publications, or creative works, or demonstrating wares.
Holding unauthorized fund-raising projects.
Hosting speakers or instructors who are paid a fee, who recruit participants, or who solicit customers or clients while giving seminars, lessons, aerobics classes, and so on. Exceptions are made for Church Educational System programs. Exceptions may be made to use meetinghouse pianos and organs for paid private instruction (see p. 294).
Holding athletic events that are not sponsored by the Church, including practices.
Holding political meetings or campaigns. As an exception, where there is no reasonable alternative, Church facilities may be used for voter registration and polling places at the request of voting officials if the officials and voters maintain Church standards in the building. For example, the voting officials should post “No Smoking” signs and enforce this restriction.

Use of Church property should not pose significant risk of harm to participants or to the property. Nor should it unduly expose the Church to liability or disturb surrounding neighbors.” (General Handbook of Instructions, p. 327)

Time Restrictions and Priority Guidelines for Scheduling Buildings

6 months - Families and Individuals:

Families and individuals in the North Ogden Utah Stake may not schedule buildings for family parties, dinners, reunions, or other personal activities more than 6 months in advance of the date, in order to avoid conflicts with ward, stake, or Church activities.

In addition, families may not schedule buildings on ward mutual nights, unless prior approval is obtained from the Bishop and the Young Men’s and Young Women’s Presidents from the wards scheduled for that Mutual night.

No activities may be scheduled in church meetinghouses on Monday nights after 6:00 PM.

12 months - Wards, Ward Auxiliaries, and Quorums:

Wards in the North Ogden Utah Stake may not schedule buildings for activities more than 12 months in advance of the date, in order to avoid conflicts with activities of the stake or the Church.

In addition, wards may not schedule activities in the cultural hall of the Stake Center on Thursday nights or Saturday mornings during the months of January and February, to avoid conflicts with stake basketball games those two months.

18 months - Stake and Stake Auxiliaries:

The stake may not schedule buildings for activities more than 18 months in advance of the date, in order to avoid conflicts with activities of the Church.

In addition, the stake generally may not schedule activities on the first Sunday of each month, to avoid conflicts with Church CES broadcasts.

For Questions About Scheduling or Building Use

After reading these policies, if you still have a question about a specific activity, please call the Stake Presidency to clarify the matter before scheduling the event and the building.

Approved and adopted Jan 12, 2006

North Ogden Utah Stake Presidency

801 786 2950

Revised Thursday, April 10, 2008 08:44:08 PM