Rivers Church Contract to Buy Downtown Castle Rock Mall Could Displace Tenants

Rivers Church is under contract to buy three downtown parcels - 136, 138 and 140 South Wilcox - in a strip mall adjacent to the Miller Library, a purchase that city business owners say would require Stumpy’s Pizza and CrossFit Loop to vacate for a church sanctuary. The church’s Project 747 campaign lists the downtown site as its target for a 300-seat auditorium, meeting rooms, a community coffee shop and leader-training space.

Lead pastor Drew Land, who launched Rivers Church in September 2024 and currently leads a congregation of nearly 200 meeting at Castle Rock Middle School, said the move grew from the church’s long-term goal of a permanent home: “Every church dreams of having a permanent home.” Rivers also maintains offices at 140 South Wilcox and its campaign homepage proclaims “Offer accepted!” under a Phase 1 fundraising drive labeled “PHASE 1 - THE RUNWAY.”

Longtime tenants in the strip mall include Castle Rock Dance Academy, Stumpy’s Pizza and CrossFit Loop. Stumpy’s manager told reporters the restaurant has been in Castle Rock for 26 years and at the Wilcox location for 16 years, and added simply, “they want to stay there.” Church materials and local accounts say most tenants could remain under church ownership as landlord, but that CrossFit Loop and Stumpy’s would have to close to make way for the sanctuary.

Project 747 campaign pages outline a range of financial targets. The campaign lists a $10 million goal for purchase plus renovations, a “total cost” of $7.47 million, and a Phase 1 target described as $4,515,000 to “secure the property” with milestone dates through March 1, 2026. The campaign site also states “Already received: $1.2 million.” Separately, local reporting cited a claim that Rivers “has fundraised 70% of the $4.5 million needed.” Those figures - $1.2 million received, a $4,515,000 Phase 1 goal, and a 70 percent claim on $4.5 million - do not align on their face, and the church’s campaign materials list multiple totals that require clarification.

Neighbors and stakeholders pressed questions at a neighborhood meeting described as taking place Monday night at Castle Rock Town Hall. Social media reaction captured at the meeting and on local pages included a commenter saying, “We don’t need another church in castle rock.” The proposal arrives in a community already attuned to church-land use disputes after a 2024 zoning fight over a congregation’s RV shelter program led to federal litigation and a settlement.

If the sale and fundraising close, the parcels’ change of ownership will trigger review of leases and likely require town permitting for religious assembly and renovations. The strip mall sits a short walk from the Philip(p) Miller Library - sources variably name it the Phillip & Jerry Miller Library or the Philip S. Miller Library - and the library adjacency has been central to both the church’s stated vision and tenants’ concerns about displacement.

Town planning staff and Douglas County property records will determine whether contracts are recorded, what notices tenants must receive, and whether a sanctuary can be added without zoning changes. Until those public-record confirmations and lease terms are produced, downtown business owners and churches remain locked in a high-stakes fight over central Castle Rock real estate and the future makeup of South Wilcox Street.