Temple News Update 

Dear Devotees and Patrons,

Hope you are all doing well and keeping good health in testing times like today. We wish and pray to Lord Venkateshwara to keep you and your family and loved ones safe, healthy, and joyful.

As most of you are aware, the lease for the current premises of both Balaji temple and Saibaba temple (cultural hall) is approaching the termination dates, as early as Dec 31st for Saibaba temple and Feb 28th for Sri Balaji temple respectively. Multiple attempts to extend the current lease terms did not yield the desired outcome and the property owners insist that we honor the lease termination dates.

As you all know, the earlier proposed temple (in Hillsboro) under construction has halted all development work for some time due to following reasons.

• The current pandemic situation has made it very difficult to find labor

• Costs have nearly doubled the expenses on both construction materials and labor.

• Our original plans to move even temporarily to this future site is not feasible as it is not suitable for occupation.

• County restrictions is also time consuming and delays due to employee shortage at county level are also adding to the issue.  

We further researched several leasing options around the vicinity. However, the cost far exceeded a potential mortgage option.

Just as God closes one door, he opens another. A new option has sprung up. This new location and premises are near Sylvan (Exit 71 on HWG 26 East) located at 6100 SW RAAB ROAD, PORTLAND, OREGON 97221. It was originally the Nexus Church. This new option has lots of potential and good opportunities for both temple and much-needed amenities at this place, including events and cultural indoor and outdoor activities for multiple age groups. This property is 18 acres with ample parking. We explored multiple options - lease-to-buy option or the total purchase of the property. The original cost for this property was ~$9.75 million. This was further reduced to ~$7.75 million by the grace of Lord Balaji.

After careful analysis of the pros/cons of the new place for potential next location for the temple, we have decided to proceed with the option of moving to the Nexus Church location. This decision was not an easy one, as we had to consider not only the cost of owning this great place, but the ongoing maintenance expenses as well. What is exciting however, is that this option enables us to project out the roadmap for the Balaji temple for future including potential option to build a new authentic temple. The extensive area gives us many choices for future expansions.

As we proceed with the option of purchasing this place, we request all your support as you have been always, which we appreciate a lot. We kindly request a pledge (monthly or alternative cadence) and/or a one-time donation that can enable us to obtain the financial muscle to move forward with this process. We humbly request you to donate generously. This can be done either directly to the temple or via matching contributions through your employers to help the temple move to this location. We would like to raise ~$2 million in a very short period as an initial investment to acquire the property. This is a great time for the donation as it will help with the tax benefits as the year is coming to an end.

If you have any questions, please feel free contact, or connect with us. We pray that Lord Venkateshwara bless us all as we take on this new endeavor.

Thanking you,

S Rajagopal

President

HECSA Portland Balaji Temple.