SALT LAKE CITY -- The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Friday announced the open house, cultural celebration and dedication dates for the Payson Utah and Córdoba Argentina temples, each of which will be unveiled to the public next year.
The free public open house for the Payson Utah Temple will be held from April 24-May 23, and will take place every day except Sundays. There will also be no activities April 26 and May 3, 10 and 17.
The cultural celebration will be held June 6, and the temple will be dedicated in three sessions June 7.
Payson Mayor Rick Moore said he is looking forward to the ceremonies.
"I am excited to see it coming," he said in a phone interview. "It is good to finally have a date. I am looking forward to it."
It will take plenty of preparation for the city to be ready for the open house and the traffic it is expected to create.
"We have already been working with the Draper and Ogden police departments to get ideas," said Moore, referring to two recent temple dedications in the state. "We know it is going to be a big challenge, but it will be well worth it."
The Payson Temple was announced by President Thomas S. Monson on Jan. 25, 2010. The official groundbreaking on the temple site took place Oct. 8, 2011. The temple is located at approximately 930 West and 1550 South on the southwest side of Payson, a mile from the 800 South-Interstate 15 interchange.
The new temple will serve approximately 22 stakes from Spanish Fork to Nephi, comprising approximately 78,000 members of the LDS Church. Those members are currently served by temples in Provo or Manti.
The Payson Temple will be the 15th operating temple in Utah. Two more temples are scheduled for the Beehive State: The Provo City Center Temple on the site of the former Provo Tabernacle, is under construction, and the Cedar City Temple has been announced.
The Córdoba Temple, following its own open house festivities, will be dedicated May 17.
The Córdoba and Payson temples will become the 145th and 146th operating temples in the world.