BUILT FOR BELONGING
Examining engaging design at Pleasant Valley Community Church in Owensboro, Ky.
Jamus Edwards Lead Pastor
Jay Mills Executive Pastor
By RaeAnn Slaybaugh
When Pleasant Valley Community Church Executive Pastor Jay Mills began looking for a partner to help expand and accommodate rapid growth, he already knew who he wanted to call.
Mills had known Rodney James, founder and president of Master’ s Plan Church Design & Construction, since the 2014 National Association of Church Business Administration( now The Church Network) annual conference. James was speaking about a biblically based approach to church construction. Mills— then a longtime college football coach transitioning into church leadership— was intrigued.“ He’ s an excellent communicator— obviously a former pastor,” Mills recalls.“ I didn’ t know him, but the way that he was able to intertwine scripture, building, and construction principles was unique, to me.” That first conversation launched a long-standing friendship based on a shared commitment to ministry. As the friendship became a working relationship, accommodating this ministry with thoughtful design emerged as a tenet.
Designing for connection When Mills joined Pleasant Valley in 2021, the church was growing rapidly. Children were being turned away because there wasn’ t enough space. Three Sunday services were necessary but unsustainable in the long term— even with them, the auditorium was crowded, and virtually every nook and cranny of the existing facility was being used. Plain and simple, Pleasant Valley needed more space for worship, children, students and gathering. But adding square footage wasn’ t enough: the church needed a facility that could support the way its people actually experienced ministry. This meant thinking carefully about how the building could encourage connection, fellowship and participation. Enlisting Rodney James for guidance, the resulting project at PVCC was completed in two primary phases. First, a new worship center and gathering spaces were created while transforming existing space for preschool and elementary ministry. Phase 1 was finished in January 2025; the second was completed by Easter. Even better, the project finished four months ahead of schedule and $ 650,000 under budget. All good things. But for Mills’ part, the most meaningful measure of success isn’ t found in these figures. It’ s evident, he says, in what happens when people walk through the church’ s doors.
Building for belonging Rodney James describes the design philosophy behind Pleasant Valley’ s building projects in three words: intimacy by design. Mills agrees:“ I think you can have separation and operational efficiency, yet— at the same time— build fellowship opportunities,” he says, offering a few example of how this looks in practice at PVCC.
16 CHURCH EXECUTIVE | JULY / AUGUST 2026