Temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Open House and Dedication

The public open house for the Wichita Kansas Temple will be held daily from Thursday, September 24, through Saturday, October 10 (excluding Sundays and Saturday, October 3). The event will formally begin with a media held on Monday, September 21, followed by two days of tours for invited guests. Elder Patrick Kearon of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles will preside at the dedication on Sunday, November 1, at 10:00 a.m. with a rebroadcast at 2:00 p.m. The dedicatory session will be broadcast to all congregations in the temple district.¹

Groundbreaking Ceremony

On Saturday, September 7, 2024, groundbreaking services were held for the Wichita Kansas Temple. Elder Steven R. Bangerter, First Counselor in the North America Central Area Presidency, presided. In his site dedicatory prayer, he said: "Please bless us this day that, as we turn this dirt as a symbol of a new beginning, that we may feel Thy Holy Spirit within our hearts as a manifestation of the divine mission of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, that we may each feel a new beginning with renewed commitment to live our lives according to His teachings and filled with His love."²

Temple Rendering

On July 22, 2024, the official exterior rendering of the Wichita Kansas Temple was released to the public.³

Temple Site

The location of the Wichita Kansas Temple has been announced as a 6.42-acre site located on North Meridian Avenue in the Moorings Plaza development in northern Wichita. Plans call for a single-story temple of approximately 9,950 square feet.⁴

Temple Announcement

On April 3, 2022, President Russell M. Nelson announced plans to construct the Wichita Kansas Temple at the April 2022 General Conference. This will be the state’s first temple. There are more than 38,000 Latter-day Saints in about 75 congregations in Kansas, a state located near the center of the United States. Wichita is the most populous city in the state. Missionaries first taught the native Shawnee and Delaware people in the Kansas area in 1831. The first branch was organized in 1882 in the central part of the state, east of Salina.⁵

Temple Design

The design motifs of the Wichita Kansas Temple draw inspiration from the Kansas landscape and local artistic heritage, incorporating rolling wheat fields, sunflowers and art deco elements. A color palette of sage green, golden wheat, soft paprika and buttercream echoes the vast prairie and agricultural vistas of the Great Plains.

Exterior

The temple is constructed with a structural steel frame clad in glass-fiber-reinforced concrete. Rising 97.5 feet from the ground to the top of the spire, it stands as a welcoming landmark in the Wichita area. The property extends over 6.42 acres, enclosed by a metal Ameristar Montage fence.

Interior

Custom nylon carpet tile is used throughout the temple, with wool and nylon area rugs in select spaces. The carpet was fabricated by Milliken of Spartanburg, South Carolina, and installed by Haskell of Salt Lake City, Utah. The area rugs were fabricated by Rugs International of Cartersville, Georgia, and installed by Haskell.

The temple’s primary stone is Crema Marfil marble, bringing warmth and elegance to the interior spaces. The stonework was fabricated and installed by Global Stone & Tile of Vineyard, Utah.

A palette of warm neutral tones graces the temple walls, complementing the golden wheat and sage green color scheme that ties to the Kansas landscape. The paint was fabricated by Benjamin Moore of Montvale, New Jersey, and installed by Koehn Painting Co. of Newton, Kansas.

Decorative paint designs throughout the temple incorporate the wheat field and sunflower motifs that characterize the Kansas prairie. The decorative paint was fabricated and installed by Allen’s Commercial Arts of Logan, Utah.

Custom decorative light fixtures combine crystal, acrylic, satin brass and polished nickel elements. Crystal chandeliers and sconces illuminate key spaces throughout the temple, creating an atmosphere of sacred elegance. The decorative lighting was fabricated by Preciosa of Kamenický Šenov, Czech Republic, and installed by Haskell of Salt Lake City, Utah.

Stained African mahogany and paint-grade poplar are used throughout the temple’s interior. The millwork was fabricated by Dovecreek Wood Products of Chula Vista, California, and installed by KBW Construction of Willard, Utah.

The art glass was designed by Holdman Studios of Lehi, Utah, in conjunction with Haskell and Sagrada Design Studio of Salt Lake City, Utah. The patterns incorporate warm vanilla, colonial blue, pink champagne, copper red and gold tones that complement the temple’s prairie-inspired color palette. The art glass was fabricated by Glass Images & Creations of Orem, Utah, and installed by Haskell of Salt Lake City.

The interior doors are stained African mahogany and painted poplar with satin brass hardware. Exterior doors feature an antique brass finish. The hardware was fabricated by Rockwood Manufacturing of Rockwood, Pennsylvania, and Baldwin Hardware of Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, and installed by Haskell of Salt Lake City, Utah. Exterior doors were fabricated by The Baut Studios of Swoyersville, Pennsylvania, and installed by Haskell. Interior doors were fabricated by Dovecreek Wood Products of Chula Vista, California, and installed by KBW Construction of Willard, Utah.

The baptismal font railings feature painted decorative guardrails with a solid wood cap and glass panels, complemented by stainless steel handrails. They were fabricated and installed by Wiemann Metalcraft of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The temple’s ceilings feature glass-fiber-reinforced gypsum (GFRG), gypsum board, and acoustic ceiling tile. The GFRG ceilings were fabricated by Unlimited Designs of Salt Lake City, Utah, and installed by Cannon Masonry of South Jordan, Utah.

The temple’s artwork includes Ryan S. Brown’s “Autumn Evening” and Michael Albrechtsen’s “Line upon Line, Precept upon Precept.”