Parker Leavitt

The Republic | azcentral.com

The LDS Church submitted plans to open a thrift store and employment training center in Gilbert

Deseret Industries%2C similar to Goodwill%2C typically sells items like clothes%2C furniture and toys

The story will be the third location in the Valley

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has submitted plans to build a retail thrift store and employment training center near the northeastern corner of Val Vista Drive and Pecos Road in Gilbert, according to town documents.

Deseret Industries is operated by the Salt Lake City-based church as a non-profit enterprise intended to provide job opportunities for those who might otherwise struggle to find employment.

Similar to a Goodwill, the store collects donated goods to sell to the public at inexpensive prices. Inventory typically includes items like clothing, furniture, toys and household goods.

Employees referred to the Deseret Industries' work rehabilitation program sometimes come from a difficult past, perhaps a felony conviction or drug rehabilitation. Others might include refugees, who can take English classes during the program, women living in shelters, troubled teens or returning military veterans, according to the church's website.

The work program teaches seven basic behaviors to help trainees achieve greater success on the job. They might also develop skills with computers, customer service, merchandising and supervising. Workers are assigned a mentor, who might be a local church leader, friend, family member or parole officer, according to the church.

The church currently operates two Deseret Industries stores in the Valley — one near Alma School and Broadway roads in Mesa and another in Phoenix near 27th and Northern avenues.

The new Gilbert location is proposed for an 8-acre lot with shopping center zoning next to the five-story Rome Towers office building. The site is about a mile west of the new LDS temple at Greenfield and Pecos roads in Gilbert.

Floor plans show about 24,000 square feet for the retail shopping area and about 18,000 square feet for processing and sorting of donations.

Building designs also show a 4,800-square-foot LDS Family Services center, where the church typically offers counseling programs. There is also space for an LDS Employment Resource Services center, where job-seekers can improve interviewing techniques and learn how to search for job opportunities.

Plans went before Gilbert's Design Review Board for preliminary input during a study session on Nov. 13. Local church officials could not immediately provide an estimated opening date for the new Deseret Industries store, and the project might require further approval before construction can begin.