Among the 33 additional temple locations announced in the past two general conferences by President Russell M. Nelson, three are in U.S. Pacific Coast states.
Plans to build a house of the Lord in Tacoma, Washington, were among 18 locations listed by President Nelson at the close of October 2022 general conference.
The Sunday afternoon session of April 2023 conference included the Church President’s announcement of 15 new temple locations. Among the 15 are the California cities of San Jose and Bakersfield.
Specific sites and groundbreaking dates have not been announced for any of the three temples.
These will bring the number of Latter-day Saint temples in Pacific states to 23: 12 in California, five in Washington, three in Oregon, two in Hawaii and one in Alaska.
The two dedicated temples in Hawaii are in Laie, on Oahu island, and in Kona, on the island of Hawaii.
Alaska’s sole temple is in Anchorage. That temple is scheduled to be reconstructed beginning next year.
Tacoma Washington Temple
5th temple in Washington state: The first, in suburban Seattle, was dedicated in 1980, followed by Spokane, 1999; the Columbia River Washington Temple, in Richland, 2001; and Moses Lake, scheduled for dedication Sept. 17.
The city: Tacoma is part of the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metropolitan area. Tacoma’s population is 221,776, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 estimates, and is Washington’s third-largest city, behind Seattle and Spokane. Tacoma is the county seat of Pierce County, which has 927,380 residents and is the state’s second most populous county.
The Church in the Tacoma area: Six stakes in Pierce County; the first, in Tacoma, was organized in 1952. Four stakes in counties to the west and south.
Current temple district: Seattle Washington Temple, which is 36 miles northeast. The Seattle temple district comprises 31 stakes.
Bakersfield California Temple
2nd temple in central California: The Fresno California Temple was dedicated in 2000. Southern California has four dedicated temples — in Los Angeles (dedicated in 1956), San Diego (1993), Redlands (2003) and Newport Beach (2005) — and one under construction in Yorba Linda.
The city: Bakersfield has 410,647 residents and is the state’s ninth-largest city and second largest in central California. It is the county seat of Kern County, which has 916,108 residents and is the 11th most populous county in the state.
The Church in the Bakersfield area: Four stakes in Kern County, three in Bakersfield and one in Ridgecrest. The first Bakersfield stake was organized in 1951. There are two stakes just to the west of Kern County and one to the north.
Current temple district: Los Angeles California Temple, 108 miles south. The Fresno California Temple is 118 miles to the north. The Los Angeles temple district comprises 36 stakes. The under-construction temple in Yorba Linda is just east of the Los Angeles temple district.
San Jose California Temple
5th temple in Northern California: Others are in Oakland, dedicated in 1964; in Sacramento, 2006; the Feather River California Temple, in Yuba City, scheduled for dedication Oct. 8; and in Modesto, announced in April 2022.
The city: San Jose has 971,233 residents; it is the third-largest city in California, behind Los Angeles and San Diego. San Jose is the county seat of Santa Clara County, which has a population of 1.87 million and is the sixth most populous county in California and the largest in Northern California.
The Church in the area: Five stakes in Santa Clara County and four stakes in nearby areas. The original San Jose Stake was organized in 1952.
Current temple district: Oakland California Temple, 42 miles to the north. The Oakland temple district has 28 stakes. The previously announced Modesto temple is also in the current Oakland temple district.
