The city issued a building permit Sept. 22 for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to build a temple in Mandarin at a project cost of $27 million.
Parkway C&A LLC is the contractor for the project on a 6.6-acre site at 3325 Loretto Road.
Plans call for a single-story temple of about 29,000 square feet.
The church announced plans to build the temple in 2022.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints bought the 8.73-acre property where the church is planned along with adjacent property in 2024 for $7.15 million.
In Florida, the Jacksonville temple joins those under construction or in operation in Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Tallahassee.
The church said in a news release there are nearly 173,000 Latter-day Saints in more than 270 congregations in Florida.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints explains the difference between a temple and a church on its website.
It says at its meetinghouses all members and visitors are welcome for services and activities.
However, temples are “only open only to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who have worked to prepare themselves for the experience.”
“Temples are set aside from the everyday world as sacred, holy places where we perform the ordinances that bind us to God and to our families for eternity. They are a place of deep reverence where Latter-day Saints who have prepared themselves for temple worship put away distractions such as cell phones and casual conversations to focus on God and His Son, Jesus Christ.”
