Ballard Mars Hill Church recently sold their 39,200-square-foot building (1401 N.W. Leary Way) to Quest Ministry for $9 million.

According to Colliers International there were 10 offers for the building, which included nine from retail groups, but the ministry ended up on top. The property was purchased by Mars Hill in 2003 for $4.8.

Quest ministry has a church in Interbay called Quest Church. According to a statement the ministry released after the purchase, the church has exceeded 1,000 members and has outgrown its current building.

“We have been amazed to see people of all backgrounds, ethnicities, and age groups come to our church,” said Minhee Cho, co-founder of Quest Church. “It has been humbling and encouraging to see more and more people attend Quest – not just as spectators or consumers, but as those who want to be part of a community of people that pray for another, learn together, encourage one another, and are on mission together.”

According to church officials, the move will allow church staff and members to be closer to their core ministry, The Bridge Care Center (BCC), which is currently located at Ballard Commons. The BCC is a drop-in center for men and women experiencing homelessness or economic hardship. Quest reported that in 2014 the BCC provided services for 684 clients.

Quest Ministry reported that they are aware of the context surrounding the dissolution of Mars Hill Church and are eager to bring their ministry to the location. After Mars Hill disbanded, the church in Ballard became the Cross & Crown Church and had about 600 members.

“Like many people, I was grieving about what happened,” Cho said. “While we may have some theological differences, we consider them brothers and sisters in Christ. Through the process of purchasing this property, we have been blessed by those at Cross and Crown Church. They have eagerly sought ways to work with Quest out of their desire to care well for community.”

A “new vision” comes with the new church: "Our vision — simple yet profound, mysterious yet plain — is to be the Church. Quest is the expression of a vision and dream of a church where truth is sought, mystery acknowledged, compassion and justice embodied, culture and arts engaged, creativity and innovation fostered, diversity and multi-ethnicity embraced, authenticity and community pursued, and sharing the love of Christ the great cause."

Remnants of Mars Hills still remain in Ballard. Colliers reports that Mars Hill has a 40,000-square-foot warehouse for sale.