How do community centers and places to gather affect the flourishing of our neighborhoods? What can churches do to provides these places of social infrastructure in our communities? In Episode 2 of Season 5, Eric and Sara Joy interview Scott Pontier from Jamestown Harbor Church in Hudsonville, Michigan about how they are designing a new church facility in partnership with a local sports program to provide a place for gathering within their local neighborhood. Eric Klinenberg from NYU and Greg Snider from Aspen Group serve as our field guides for this episode providing deeper insights to the sociological and design aspects of creating social infrastructure.
In this episode, Eric and Sara Joy talk with Pastor Scott Pontier about how Jamestown Harbor Church has explored the needs and opportunities for creating a "center" in their suburban community. After a few years of conversation with the local township board and other organizations, they landed on partnering with a local sports program to design a facility that provides gathering space for the church and also serve as a sports complex. Though not using the term specifically, it is evident through this interview that the missional heart of Jamestown Harbor Church has been to create "social infrastructure" in order to be a blessing to their community.
Social infrastructure is a term coined by Eric Klinenberg, a sociologist from NYU, which refers to the physical spaces and places that are the venue for the formation of civic, social bonds with those in living in proximity to one another. The journey of Jamestown Harbor Church demonstrates a church leadership team and congregation that has sought to identify where there is a deficit of social infrastructure in their community and discern how their church can play a super important role in creating a venue that fills the void and builds opportunities for people to form relationships in their suburban context.
Pastor Scott stresses the importance of being flexible and being more in love with your mission than your stuff as essential qualities for taking on partnerships and building places that are to be used freely by the local community. He acknowledges that the process has been arduous at times with dead-ends or outcomes that look vastly different than anticipated, but trusting that God is at work and staying laser-focused on the mission of blessing the community has enabled this vision to move forward despite the unplanned pathways. At Jamestown Harbor Church they are intent on creating a place where relationships are formed and deepened among members of their township so that people can experience the fullness of shalom found in Jesus.
Eric and Sara Joy also speak with a couple of field guides who provide professional expertise to expand upon the sociological and design facets of social infrastructure. Eric Klinenberg of NYU shares his definition of social infrastructure, why it is so important, and how it differs from social capital. He also discusses the ways churches can either support or detract from building cohesive and integrated communities with their facilities and programs. Greg Snider with Aspen Group gives more color to the community process that Jamestown Harbor Church engaged before landing on their current plan for to include a sports complex. He also highlights several avenues churches can pursue when considering the type and design of social infrastructure elements on their properties.
Episode Contributors
Scott Pontier is the Lead Pastor of Jamestown Harbor Church in Hudsonville, Michigan.
Eric Klinenberg is Helen Gould Shepard Professor of Social Science and Director of the Institute for Public Knowledge at New York University. A New York Times bestselling author, he has written several books including Palaces for the People: How Social Infrastructure Can Help Fight Inequality, Polarization, and the Decline of Civic Life (Crown, 2018), Going Solo: The Extraordinary Rise and Surprising Appeal of Living Alone (The Penguin Press, 2012), Fighting for Air: The Battle to Control America’s Media (Metropolitan Books, 2007), and Heat Wave: A Social Autopsy of Disaster in Chicago (University of Chicago Press, 2002).
Greg Snider is a Ministry Space Strategist at Aspen Group. He has more than 20 years of construction experience in residential, light commercial, and interior build-out. Fifteen of those years were spent building churches, including Living Water Church in Bolingbrook, Illinois, West Side Christian Church in Springfield, Illinois, and Community Christian Church in Naperville, Illinois. At Aspen Group, he works diligently to obtain an intimate understanding of the mission and vision of each church. He then uses this knowledge to guide the project team as they translate that vision into effective design and ultimately into a finished, ministry-enhancing facility.
Access more Show Notes with pictures and resources related to this episode. Sign up for the free online Community Forum on July 26, 2022 to discuss this episode with Eric, Sara Joy, and Chris and other podcast listeners. Register today!
More information about this podcast and helpful church and urbanism resources can be found on The Embedded Church website.
Related Resources
Palaces for the People by Eric Klinenberg
The Celtic Way of Evangelism by George G. Hunter III
Season 1: Episode 2 - Community Collaborations (Third Church Community Charrette Process) - The Embedded Church Podcast
Season 3: Episode 6 - Reading Palaces for the People - The Embedded Church Podcast
Find these Key Terms on The Embedded Church website:
- Charrette
- Civic Sphere
- Fragmentation
- Public Belonging
- Social Belonging
- Social Capital
- Social Determinants of Health (SDOH)
- Social Infrastructure
- Threshold
Show Credits
Hosted and Produced by Eric O. Jacobsen and Sara Joy Proppe
Edited by Adam Higgins | Odd Dad Out Voice Productions
Theme Music by Jacob Shaffer
Artwork by Lance Kagey | Rotator Creative