Arizona megachurch Christ’s Church of the Valley wins 19-acre land auction with $9M bid

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Thursday, June 11, 2026

Christ’s Church of the Valley, a nondenominational Christian megachurch with 18 campuses across Arizona, will soon be able to start building its 19th campus after making a winning $9 million bid to acquire nearly 19 acres of land at an auction held by the City of Gilbert.

The auction for the approximately 18.9 acres of land generally located at the northeast corner of East Ray Road and South Santan Village Parkway took place on June 1, according to the Gilbert Town Council, which opened bidding for the property valued at $6.39 million.

In addition to the church’s winning $9 million bid, three other companies all made bids well over the property's value. Arcus bid $7.6 million. Abbot Grill LLC bid $7.5 million and LBKW Real Estate LLC bid $7.2 million.

During a Jan. 6 public hearing on the proposed sale of the property, Tony Bergarello, the executive pastor for Christ’s Church of the Valley, which has an average weekly attendance of more than 56,000, said the church wanted to be part of the Gilbert community.

“We’re really just coming today to offer thanks,” Bergarello said, as reported by The Gilbert Independent. “We’d love to be a part of this community.”

He pointed out that the church was already serving some 1,000 Gilbert residents at its Chandler, Queen Creek and Mesa campuses, noting community-oriented programs it operates, including public youth sports programs. 

Christ’s Church of the Valley didn’t immediately respond to calls for further comment Thursday, but its expansion bid comes after it faced backlash from some members in March for speaking out in support of Joshua Jacobsen, a convicted sex offender and church member.

Jacobsen pleaded guilty in 2006 to sexual contact with a minor who was a student and soccer player on a team he coached, Fox 10 reports.

Kayleigh Kozak, the minor, is now a prominent victim advocate who inspired “Kayleigh’s Law." The legislation allows judges to issue lifelong "no-contact" protective orders for survivors of severe violent crimes and sexual assault.

Jacobsen was sentenced to lifetime probation for his crimes. He recently sought to have that probation ended.

"My performance on probation and my actions over the past 18 years … would show you that I'm ready to be off of probation and ready to move on to the next chapter in life," Jacobsen said in March, according to Fox 10.

Christ’s Church of the Valley reportedly wrote character letters for Jacobsen, and one leader also appeared at an earlier hearing in support of Jacobsen.

The church clarified in a February statement that it only wrote a letter to acknowledge “progress made in his faith journey as he, with his wife’s support, sought permission to reunite with his family in the same home.”

“This letter was never written to terminate the perpetrator’s probation,” the church said.

Jacobsen’s application to terminate his probation was denied on Monday.