They told a remarkable story of the acquisitiionof the land in 1998 when Sathidas Powell was branch president. The parcel had been inherited by an old man, and then had been in litigation for 22 years, by which time the heir was in his 80's. He immediately put it under contract with a large real estate development company who would put shops and apartments on it. They tore down the structures and cleared the land, then fell on some hard times and had to sell some assets to meet their cash flow needs. This is when the church was looking, and they grabbed it. It is located on a major street, easy to find, with a bus stop in front. Next door is a Catholic church built on a hill where the Apostle Thomas allegedly lived for several years after converting the local king (and before being killed by an irate brahmin on a hill about 3 km away). Across the street is the largest Assembly of God church in this city of seven million. With the development in the last decade you don't find parcels this large anymore, unless the price is astronomical.

Then there was the long process of approvals from zoning, building, city, police, fire, etc. officials, all looking for a little grease money which the church refused to give. One of the holdouts was the police chief, who happened to rent an apartment which he owned to a missionary couple who became his friends. He gained an appreciation for what the church is about, and approval was forthcoming.

Now construction is ready to begin, the lot is empty with no squatters on it (which is rare here, and unpleasant to deal with), and even the vendors who lined the sidewalk a couple years ago have gone elsewhere.