Gilbert Arizona Temple

The 10-acre site selected for the Gilbert Arizona Temple is located near the Loop 202 on the southeast corner of Greenfield Road and Pecos Road. Church officials indicate, however, that construction of the temple is a few years off.¹

Don Evans, spokesman for the church in Arizona, says the announcement of temples to be built in Gilbert and in the Gila Valley came in response to demands currently placed on the state's two operating temples in Mesa and in Snowflake. In recent years, the Church has built temples on a smaller scale. Evans notes that the Mesa temple is more than six times the size of the temple in Snowflake.²

This two-temple announcement for Arizona is the first temple announcement made by President Thomas S. Monson since becoming president of the Church in February 2008. It brings the total number of temples in Arizona to four. "It is my personal priority to make sure members of the Church have access to the blessings of the temple," said President Monson. "It is here where members learn of their divine origin and destiny; where they are strengthened spiritually as individuals and as families. Temples are sanctuaries from the storms of life."³

Located in the fast-growing southeastern section of the Phoenix metropolitan area—just south of Mesa—Gilbert and its surrounding communities enjoy a high concentration of Church members, who currently attend the Mesa Arizona Temple. The edifice will make the sacred ordinances of the temple more accessible to the members of these communities.