In 1997, church presidentGordon B. Hinckley, announced the church would begin building smaller temples. The first of these smaller temples was built in Monticello, Utah, with the second in Anchorage, Alaska. After the groundbreaking for the Anchorage Alaska Temple in 1998, construction of the 6,800-square-foot (630 m2) building took only nine months.
The entrance of the Anchorage Alaska Temple
The west side of the Anchorage Alaska Temple features the seven stars of the Big Dipper pointing to the North Star, a symbol found on the Alaskan flag and on the Salt Lake Temple. The temple walls are covered with gray and white quartz-flecked granite, and the temple design incorporates Alaskan motifs, such as likenesses of fir trees on the doorway pilasters. The stained glass is reminiscent of water, and stylized evergreens with patterns resembling native designs are used to adorn interior furnishings.[2]
Hinckley dedicated the temple on January 9, 1999, with more than six thousand members from as far away as the Yukon braving the freezing weather. After remodeling that nearly doubled the size of the temple, Hinckley rededicated the temple on February 8, 2004. The Anchorage Alaska Temple now has a total floor area of 11,937 square feet (1,109.0 m2), two ordinance rooms, and one sealing room.
In 2020, like all others in the church, the Anchorage Alaska Temple was temporarily closed in response to the coronavirus pandemic.[3]
New structure
In January 2023, the church announced plans to relocate the Anchorage Alaska Temple to the nearby spot currently occupied by a meetinghouse. The new building will be approximately 30,000 square feet, an increase from the current 11,930-square-foot temple. Construction on the new building will begin in early 2024 and is anticipated to be completed in 2026. The existing temple will remain open while the new one is constructed. Following dedication of the temple in its new location, the existing structure will be decommissioned and removed, with a meetinghouse then built on the land.[4]
