3 new Mormon temples planned for Arizona. Here's everything we know about them
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced three new temples for Arizona in the past year and a half.
President Russell M. Nelson announced that a temple would be built in Flagstaff on April 6. The church also announced in 2024 temples would be built in Yuma and Queen Creek.
However, since the announcements were made, there has been relatively little news or updates on the temples, including where in each city they will be built or when the groundbreaking will be held.
"We are thrilled at the announcement of another temple being built in Arizona," church spokesperson Jennifer Wheeler said in a statement to The Arizona Republic. "Temples are sacred places where we worship Jesus Christ. Having a temple in Flagstaff will give the members of our Church who reside in that area more convenient access to worship Jesus at the temple regularly."
Temples are considered the sacred spaces where church members can worship and connect with God. There are more than 300 temples around the world, with just over 150 of those in the United States, according to the church's website.
Here's everything we know about the new temples being built and the six already in operation.
The three new Arizona temples are among more than 45 new temples announced by President Russell M. Nelson, the leader of the church, in the past 18 months.
The Yuma temple was announced on April 7, 2024. The church confirmed that there were no new details, including a site for the temple or a timeline for construction, to share about the temple.
Nelson announced that the church would build a temple in Queen Creek on Oct. 6, 2024. The church confirmed that a site for the temple or a timeline for construction has not been announced.
Easter show is a Mesa tradition: Here's how to attend 2025 LDS Easter Pageant
The Flagstaff temple was announced on April 6, 2025. The church confirmed that there were no new details, including a site for the temple or a timeline for construction, to share about the temple.
The Grand Canyon State is already home to six temples that are open and in operation.
Arizona is the state with the fifth most LDS temples, following Utah (32), California (12), Idaho (11) and Texas (10).
The Mesa Arizona Temple is the oldest in Arizona and among the first temples built by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The temple took five years to build and was completed in 1927. It features sprawling gardens and a visitor's center. The Mesa temple also hosts a huge Christmas lights display and an Easter Pageant each year.
The Snowflake Arizona Temple was the second built in the Grand Canyon State. It was announced in 2000 and opened in 2002.
The Gila Valley Arizona Temple, located near the towns of Thatcher and Safford, was announced in 2008 and was completed in 2010.
The Gilbert Arizona Temple, located on Greenfield and Pecos roads, was built several years after the Gila Valley Temple, reaching completion in 2014. The temple and its 82-foot spire are easily visible from the Loop 202 freeway in the southeast Valley.
The Phoenix Arizona Temple, which is located on Pinnacle Peak Road near 51st Avenue, was announced in 2008 and completed in 2014. The temple covers 27,423 square feet with a full basement and an 89-foot-tall spire.
The Tucson Arizona Temple is the newest Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints temple completed in the state. It was finished in 2017.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 3 Mormon temples planned for Arizona. Here's what to know
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Deseret News 175 years: From settlement to 3.5M people
An estimated 20,000 Indigenous people lived in what is now Utah when the Mormon pioneers arrived in the valley of the Great Salt Lake in 1847. Those Native Americans included members of the Ute, Paiute, Goshute, Shoshone and Navajo tribes. The pioneers themselves numbered around 1,637 that first year. 'When the pioneers arrived here, there was already a substantial Indian civilization and culture existing,' Elder Marlin K. Jensen, a member of the Quorum of the Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said in a July 24, 2010 speech on what is now celebrated as Pioneer Day. The pioneers no more 'discovered' the Great Basin than Christopher Columbus 'discovered' America, he said. Elder Jensen, a former church historian who is now an emeritus general authority, cited a July 31, 1847, journal entry from Mormon pioneer William Clayton: '(The Shoshone) appear to be displeased because we have traded with the Utahs, and (the Shoshone) say that they own this land and the Utahs have come over the line.' 'The truth of the matter is that the Mormon pioneers had 'come over the line' as well,' Elder Jensen said. 'Perhaps only Brigham Young, with his prophetic gifts, could have foreseen at that time that the tiny trickle of pioneers who were then coming into the Great Basin would one day, in just a few years, grow into a mighty stream of immigrants.' As more pioneers arrived, the population in the territory grew to an estimated 3,000 in 1848. Two years later, it more than tripled to 11,380. And over the next decade, it swelled to 40,273 in 1860, a 253% increase, according to U.S. census figures. Though not at that rapid rate, Utah has sustained marked growth since 1900. More recently, it was the fastest-growing state in the country from 2010 to 2020. As of July 2024, Utah had a population of 3.5 million people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Among the few possessions those early pioneers lugged across the plains was a Ramage printing press in an ox-pulled wagon. Named after American printing press manufacturer Adam Ramage, pioneer William Phelps bought the press in Boston. It was used to print the first issue of the Deseret News on June 15, 1850. Since that day, the Deseret News has chronicled life in what is now Utah and beyond, including the state's dramatic growth over the past 175 years. The early settlers immediately began planting crops and building houses in their new high desert home. And Brigham Young started making plans. 'Although the struggle for survival was difficult in the first years of settlement, the Mormons were better equipped by experience than many other groups to tame the harsh land. They had pioneered other settlements in the Midwest, and their communal religious faith underscored the necessity of cooperative effort. Basic industries developed rapidly, the city was laid out, and building began,' according to Settlement of outlying areas began as soon as possible. Between 1847 and 1900, the Latter-day Saints founded about 500 settlements in Utah and neighboring states. The dawn of the 20th century brought technological revolutions that would transform society. Salt Lake City saw its first automobile early in the 1900s, and the first airplane wasn't far behind. A U.S. census bulletin dated Feb. 4, 1901, showed Utah — only admitted as a state five years earlier — with a population of 276,749, a 33% increase over a decade earlier. 'The population of Utah in 1900 is more than twenty-four times as large as that given for 1850, the year Utah was organized as a territory,' according to the bulletin. In the Roaring Twenties, first letters then passengers began flying out of Salt Lake City's Woodward Field, a 100-acre landing strip the city bought in 1920 for mail operations. Named after local pilot John P. Woodward, the field evolved to become the Salt Lake City International Airport. Utah experienced modest growth through the 1930s, but saw a rapid and sustained influx of immigrants through the 'war years,' the 1940s. Utah's population increased 25.2% during that decade — most coming on the Wasatch Front — as it grew from 555,310 to 688,862, according to HistoryToGo. Immigration greatly increased the minority population, especially as Black and Hispanic people moved in to take defense jobs. Many immigrants during that period were not members of the predominant religion. The U.S. government also relocated 10,000 Japanese Americans from the West Coast to Topaz, Utah, as part of an anti-Japanese movement during World War II. In 1947, Utahns celebrated 100 years in the Salt Lake Valley. Despite earlier problems the U.S. government had with those 'pesky Mormons,' as the Deseret News-produced book 'Through Our Eyes' put it, all was forgotten. President Harry S Truman sent congratulations on the pioneer centennial: 'Utah stands in a proud place among her sister commonwealths. Her rich agriculture, her business and industry, her pioneering in social services, her zeal of education, and not the least, her men of wisdom and valiant women have given her prestige unexcelled by any other state.' As of July 2024, Utah was 75.5% white, 16% Hispanic, 2.9% Asian, 1.6% Black and 1.6% Native American or Alaska Native, according to the U.S. census statistics. Through the 1950s and early 1960s, the state's population kept a steady pace toward 1 million residents, finally hitting the mark in 1966. Community leaders celebrated the achievement by greeting Utah's newest resident, Morris M. Arnold — dubbed 'Mr. Million' — with a 60-piece band as he stepped off the airplane from Kentucky. The state's population reached 2 million just 29 years later. And 20 years later, the Beehive State hit that 3 million population milestone sometime in October 2015. 'Three million Utahns. Wow,' Pam Perlich, director of demographic research at the University of Utah Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, said at the time. She called it a 'stunning achievement' for a geographically isolated Intermountain state that in 1950 had only 500,000 residents who came and went based on the ebbs and flows of agriculture and mining. The state picked up another 60,000 residents between July 2023 and July 2024, pushing it past 3.5 million, per the U.S. Census Bureau. Last October, the Gardner Institute projected Utah would grow from 3.5 million to 4 million residents between 2024-2033, an average annual growth rate of 1.5%. 'The short-term projections indicate continued statewide population growth driven by a nearly 50/50 split between natural increase and net migration out to 2033. Continued economic growth largely drives this migration of new residents to Utah,' said Mallory Bateman, director of demographic research at Gardner. 'A combination of historical data, trends and local expert knowledge inform our baseline projection scenario.' Utah's seven most populated counties in 2023 were Salt Lake, Utah, Davis, Weber, Washington, Cache and Tooele, and that order is not expected to change by 2023, per the Gardner Institute. The order of growth, however, differs for those counties. Utah County is predicted to gain the most new residents (164,000), followed by Salt Lake (125,000), Washington (63,000), Davis (43,000), Weber (27,000), Cache (22,000) and Tooele (20,000).
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Deseret News 175 years: From settlement to 3.5M people
An estimated 20,000 Indigenous people lived in what is now Utah when the Mormon pioneers arrived in the valley of the Great Salt Lake in 1847. Those Native Americans included members of the Ute, Paiute, Goshute, Shoshone and Navajo tribes. The pioneers themselves numbered around 1,637 that first year. 'When the pioneers arrived here, there was already a substantial Indian civilization and culture existing,' Elder Marlin K. Jensen, a member of the Quorum of the Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said in a July 24, 2010 speech on what is now celebrated as Pioneer Day. The pioneers no more 'discovered' the Great Basin than Christopher Columbus 'discovered' America, he said. Elder Jensen, a former church historian who is now an emeritus general authority, cited a July 31, 1847, journal entry from Mormon pioneer William Clayton: '(The Shoshone) appear to be displeased because we have traded with the Utahs, and (the Shoshone) say that they own this land and the Utahs have come over the line.' 'The truth of the matter is that the Mormon pioneers had 'come over the line' as well,' Elder Jensen said. 'Perhaps only Brigham Young, with his prophetic gifts, could have foreseen at that time that the tiny trickle of pioneers who were then coming into the Great Basin would one day, in just a few years, grow into a mighty stream of immigrants.' As more pioneers arrived, the population in the territory grew to an estimated 3,000 in 1848. Two years later, it more than tripled to 11,380. And over the next decade, it swelled to 40,273 in 1860, a 253% increase, according to U.S. census figures. Though not at that rapid rate, Utah has sustained marked growth since 1900. More recently, it was the fastest-growing state in the country from 2010 to 2020. As of July 2024, Utah had a population of 3.5 million people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Among the few possessions those early pioneers lugged across the plains was a Ramage printing press in an ox-pulled wagon. Named after American printing press manufacturer Adam Ramage, pioneer William Phelps bought the press in Boston. It was used to print the first issue of the Deseret News on June 15, 1850. Since that day, the Deseret News has chronicled life in what is now Utah and beyond, including the state's dramatic growth over the past 175 years. The early settlers immediately began planting crops and building houses in their new high desert home. And Brigham Young started making plans. 'Although the struggle for survival was difficult in the first years of settlement, the Mormons were better equipped by experience than many other groups to tame the harsh land. They had pioneered other settlements in the Midwest, and their communal religious faith underscored the necessity of cooperative effort. Basic industries developed rapidly, the city was laid out, and building began,' according to Settlement of outlying areas began as soon as possible. Between 1847 and 1900, the Latter-day Saints founded about 500 settlements in Utah and neighboring states. The dawn of the 20th century brought technological revolutions that would transform society. Salt Lake City saw its first automobile early in the 1900s, and the first airplane wasn't far behind. A U.S. census bulletin dated Feb. 4, 1901, showed Utah — only admitted as a state five years earlier — with a population of 276,749, a 33% increase over a decade earlier. 'The population of Utah in 1900 is more than twenty-four times as large as that given for 1850, the year Utah was organized as a territory,' according to the bulletin. In the Roaring Twenties, first letters then passengers began flying out of Salt Lake City's Woodward Field, a 100-acre landing strip the city bought in 1920 for mail operations. Named after local pilot John P. Woodward, the field evolved to become the Salt Lake City International Airport. Utah experienced modest growth through the 1930s, but saw a rapid and sustained influx of immigrants through the 'war years,' the 1940s. Utah's population increased 25.2% during that decade — most coming on the Wasatch Front — as it grew from 555,310 to 688,862, according to HistoryToGo. Immigration greatly increased the minority population, especially as Black and Hispanic people moved in to take defense jobs. Many immigrants during that period were not members of the predominant religion. The U.S. government also relocated 10,000 Japanese Americans from the West Coast to Topaz, Utah, as part of an anti-Japanese movement during World War II. In 1947, Utahns celebrated 100 years in the Salt Lake Valley. Despite earlier problems the U.S. government had with those 'pesky Mormons,' as the Deseret News-produced book 'Through Our Eyes' put it, all was forgotten. President Harry S Truman sent congratulations on the pioneer centennial: 'Utah stands in a proud place among her sister commonwealths. Her rich agriculture, her business and industry, her pioneering in social services, her zeal of education, and not the least, her men of wisdom and valiant women have given her prestige unexcelled by any other state.' As of July 2024, Utah was 75.5% white, 16% Hispanic, 2.9% Asian, 1.6% Black and 1.6% Native American or Alaska Native, according to the U.S. census statistics. Through the 1950s and early 1960s, the state's population kept a steady pace toward 1 million residents, finally hitting the mark in 1966. Community leaders celebrated the achievement by greeting Utah's newest resident, Morris M. Arnold — dubbed 'Mr. Million' — with a 60-piece band as he stepped off the airplane from Kentucky. The state's population reached 2 million just 29 years later. And 20 years later, the Beehive State hit that 3 million population milestone sometime in October 2015. 'Three million Utahns. Wow,' Pam Perlich, director of demographic research at the University of Utah Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, said at the time. She called it a 'stunning achievement' for a geographically isolated Intermountain state that in 1950 had only 500,000 residents who came and went based on the ebbs and flows of agriculture and mining. The state picked up another 60,000 residents between July 2023 and July 2024, pushing it past 3.5 million, per the U.S. Census Bureau. Last October, the Gardner Institute projected Utah would grow from 3.5 million to 4 million residents between 2024-2033, an average annual growth rate of 1.5%. 'The short-term projections indicate continued statewide population growth driven by a nearly 50/50 split between natural increase and net migration out to 2033. Continued economic growth largely drives this migration of new residents to Utah,' said Mallory Bateman, director of demographic research at Gardner. 'A combination of historical data, trends and local expert knowledge inform our baseline projection scenario.' Utah's seven most populated counties in 2023 were Salt Lake, Utah, Davis, Weber, Washington, Cache and Tooele, and that order is not expected to change by 2023, per the Gardner Institute. The order of growth, however, differs for those counties. Utah County is predicted to gain the most new residents (164,000), followed by Salt Lake (125,000), Washington (63,000), Davis (43,000), Weber (27,000), Cache (22,000) and Tooele (20,000).
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On Father's Day, I'm thankful for a special uncle and making amends with my Dad
Father's Day always brings back bittersweet memories for me. My dad had been abusive to Mom, and they separated when I was 5, and my brother Adam was 2. The next time I saw him I was 15 and my brother was 12. Although our mom did her best to give us a stable and secure family life, there was always something, or someone, missing. Our dad. I felt for my brother because he was never to have special father-son moments like some of his friends had with their dads. Even so, Mom did her best to make that little apartment in the Liberty Square Housing Project a place where a 'real' family lived, even if there was no dad there. Although Dad wasn't in our life until we were adults, we were never short of having good men to serve as surrogate dads to us. Our first surrogate dad was Uncle Morgan, the husband of Mom's older sister, Thelma. Their home in rural East Palatka in North Florida was where we were welcomed as Mom planned her escape from our dad. Uncle Morgan's warm and comforting words, 'Bring the children to us, Ida. They will be safe here until you get settled in Miami.' It didn't matter that they already had five children of their own, ages 6 to 1. To him and Aunt Thelma, two more children wouldn't matter. So, my brother and I went to live with Uncle Morgan and Aunt Thelma for the next six months. It was early 1944, during World War II, and times were tough, especially for Blacks. But somehow, Uncle Morgan made us feel safe and secure. A soft-spoken gentle man, he often hummed a tune while he worked. And he seemed to be able to do everything. When the roof leaked, he fixed it. When we were ill, he cooked up some kind of bush medicine or home remedy that made us well again. Uncle Morgan worked on the farm of some neighboring whites, and at slaughtering time, he brought home fresh meat, which he smoked in an outside smokehouse. He also brought home some of the animal fat or tallow (I think that's what it's called), which Aunt Thelma mixed with potash to make soap. That soap was used for everything from scrubbing the wood floors to washing the family's laundry to bathing us children in a big tin tub in the kitchen. Mornings at our new home bustled with activity. Aunt Thelma packed Uncle's lunch in a clean lard bucket and sent him off to work while the three older children — including me and my cousin Bernice, who was a year younger, got ready for school. Then she packed our lunches, usually a warm biscuit smeared generously with homemade apple butter (still one of my favorite snacks). We loved Aunt Thelma. She was sweet and funny. But it was when Uncle Morgan came home from work that the house really came alive. I loved to watch him putter around the house, or sitting on the front porch sharpening his razor on a leather strap. He wasn't a big man, but there was a quiet strength about him. Soon, it was time for Mom to come for us. It was just before Easter and Mom brought gifts for all of us children. For Bernice and me, it was identical blue-and-white dresses that we would wear to church on Easter Sunday. All too soon, it was time to move on to our new home in the big city of Miami. Uncle Morgan got one of his friends to drive us to the Greyhound bus station. I don't remember crying as we left Palatka, but I did leave a piece of my heart there. It would be 26 years before I would see my dear uncle again. It was at the funeral of a family member, when I noticed a slightly built man smiling at me from across the room. He looked familiar. And then it hit me. 'Uncle Morgan,' I said as we reached out to hug each other. 'Do you remember me?' he asked. 'How could I ever forget you,' I said, thanking him for the time he had been dad to me and my brother when we so desperately needed a dad. The years hadn't treated him too well. But he still had that same kind manner and quick smile. He would die of cancer a few years later. By then, my brother and I had developed a relationship with our own dad. Reaching out to him was awkward at first. We didn't know how our mom would feel about us trying to get to know our dad after so many years. But Mom gave us her blessings. She had forgiven Dad a long time ago for the pain he had caused her. My brother and I took our children to see Dad on what was to be our last Father's Day together. At dinner, Dad kept his head bowed most of the time. I didn't know until later that he didn't want us to see the tears in his eyes. Dad was crying tears of joy mixed with regret. Today as we honor our fathers, I am happy that I made the effort to get to know the man responsible for my being here. He wasn't perfect. He made mistakes, big mistakes, that he wished he could undo. But the most important thing is, we forgave him. And we showed him love. So, on this Father's Day, I have no regrets. Happy Father's Day, Dad. Warm congratulations to Oliver L. Gross, who on June 7 was the only non-lawyer among five honorees recognized at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. Bar Association and Foundation's 44th installation and scholarship gala. The event was at Florida International University's Roz and Cal Kovens Center at the Biscayne Bay campus in North Miami. Gross, president and CEO of New Urban Development LLC, an affiliate of the Urban League of Greater Miami, was honored with the Community Service Champion Award for overseeing the acquisition, development, financing, and property management of over 1,300 affordable housing units, which represents more than $300 million in investment, primarily in Miami-Dade County. Gross and his wife Janis have been married for 27 years and live in the Turnberry area. Also honored: Alexis Hammond, the Rising Star Award; Carlos J. Martinez, the Commitment to Justice Award; Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, the Trailblazer Award; and U.S. Circuit Court Judge Embry Kidd, the Richard E. S Toomey Legal Legacy Award.
