North View of the Temple from the Conference Center	South View of the Temple

The north extension of the temple reaches ground level. Only skylights will be above ground level. The extension is three stories tall and will house offices, baptismal fonts etc.	Like the north extension of the temple, the Temple Experience Visitor Center (just beyond the workmen) is mostly underground with some extension beyond ground level. The steep hill to the left goes down to the temple foundation.

The northwest garden area designed for peaceful meditation is progressing. The building show here is a part of that area. It is not clear to me what is planned for in interior beyond, temple views and restrooms.	Planter boxes with water lines and ligting are under construction.

The Assembly Hall - A large and ornate Chapel. The building is used when the tabernacle is simply too big.

The original meeting place built after the Saints came to Utah. It was finished in 1867. It is the home of the "Tabernacle Choir, Orchestra and Bells on Temple Square." The building was etensively renovated in 2003-2004. Before the remodeling many thousands were baptized in the tabernacle (including myself). My father documented how the roof was constructed as his thesis in Civil Engineering in the 1940s.

Joseph Smith Memorial Building - Once this was the Hotel Utah, but was remodeled for offices, banquet areas, and other uses, while retaining the Roof Restaurant with the best views of Temple Square.

The Church Office Building tower was opened in 1972 and dedicated in 1975. At 420 feet tall it was the tallest building in Salt Lake City for many years. It contains most, but not all of the church offices in the Salt Lake City area.

Church Administration Building - Offices for the First Presidency and the Quorum of Twelve Apostles.	The Lion House and Beehive House are pioneer residences which remain on Office Square. Both are now being renovated.

View of the construction entrance between the Relief Society Building and the Church Office Building Tower	The largest part of the Office Building Plaza is 100% complete. The only areas to finish are the construction entrances from South and North Temple streets. This should be complete this summer.

The Conference Center. Construction begain on July 24, 1997 and was completed in 2000.	City Creek which runs trough the area is partially surfaced along the south side of th Conference Center.

The Church History Museum - The museum houses historical artifacts excluding books.	Family Search Library - The wold's largest collection of geneological records.

On April 11, the deseret news reported that the renovation project for the Salt Lake Temple had reached the half-way point as the final concrete was placed for the new footings on which the base-isolators will sit which will support the temple. Concrete deliver trucks brought in 1600 cubic yards of concrete (that requires about 160 truck loads.) The pour was difficult because lots of re-bar had been placed before the concrete was poured. Rebar is used because while concrete had tremendous compressive strength, it has poor tensil strength. You can't compress it much but if you can get a hold of it you can tear it appart. The rebar provides greater tensil strength.

The author once helped his father pour 4 feet of concrete through holes that had been drilled in the floor above to provide extra protection from a high energy radiation system that was being instsalled a the University of Utah Medical center. We could not see through the floor or observe the conctrate from below as forms were there holding the concrete in place. Large cuts had been made in the concrete walls to allow the concrete to flow out into the wall so that the new concrete could be held in place as the new ceiling above the radiation machine. It was a blind pour and we could not be certain that the concrete had flowed into the walls properly. We had to wait 28 days before we could remove the forms from the outside walls to see how well the concrete had dlowed into the walls. The pour had not gone smoothly because of continuous clogging of the concrete pumper. We had reasons to be worried. Thankfully the concrete had flowed well enough into the walls that we did not have to start over 9a financial disaster).

At the temple the pour flowed in under the temple walls and extended many feet outward from the walls. The depth of the footing was six feet. A typical home had footings of about 2 feet tall and 4 feet wide.

On Saturday afternoon of the April General Conference the church releases "on-line" the annual statistics for the prior year. What follows is a discussion of those results. A year ago the church announced membership by continent and country. I could not find a update to those numbers this year. One thing is certain, North and South America have more than 80% of total church membership based on data from 2021.  

The year 2022 saw strong improvement in church membership metrics as the world came out of the SARS-COV-2 pandemic. Church membership topped 17 million for the first time. It would be nice if the church reported the number of "Children of Record Baptized", rather than number of "Children of Record born,"as we could infer some other important statistics from that.

As convert baptims accelerated from recent years, the total topped seventeen million for the first time

The number of missions worldwide has been in the 400-421 range since the required expanions which were required when the missionary age was lowered to 18 for young men and 19 for young wormen.

The rebound from 2020 when many missionaries were recalled due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is simkply stunning.

The number of baptisms per missionary almost returned to 2019 levels, which was the highest level since 2013.

The rebound in baptisms tracks well with the rebound in the number of full time missionaries serving

The number of Church Serivce Missionaries dropped by almost seven thousand. I don't have an explaination for this decline.

Clearly people did not want to have children in 2020, but things returned to a more normla level in 2021 and 2022. It's just a fluke that the 2022 and 2023 number are almost identical.

The number of temples dedicated in 2022 was 5. This number must increase going forward. There are about 320 temples in operation or announnced. There are 175 temples dedicated as of the end of 2022. That leaves about 145 temples that have been announced, site disclosed, ground broken, in construction or complete but not yet dedicated.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released new photos from elevated locations around temple square. These photos now offer a look into what is being done on main street.

On Saturday November, 18, Sherry and I traveled to the Payson Utah Temple, for the sealing of her nephew. We'd been here before for the sealing of my cousin not long after the temple opened. The couple, who grew up in Riverton, chose the Payson Temple for the beauty of its sealing rooms. The days before Thanksgiving week are popular for weddings, but the Payson temple were crowded with weddings on the day we visited. The fountain ourtside the front side of the temple is also a fine place for photographs.

The sealing rooms take the temple's top floor, and the endowment rooms are on the second floor. The San Diego Temple also follows the pattern of the sealing rooms being above the celestial room. There is a direct elevator from the first floor to the third floor. The large marriage waiting room is located in the center of the third floor, with sealing rooms around it along the outside walls. The glass allows significant light into the rooms, and the glass wall is rounded in the four rooms in the middle of each wall. The rooms are indeed very attractive. I don't know if the Payson Utah floor plan has been used anywhere else.

Most new missions are located in Africa, where church growth is strongest. They include:

• Cote d"vorie Abidjan North Mission
• Democratic Republic of the Congo Kananga Mission
• Nigeria Aba Mission
• Nigeria Abuja Mission
• South Africa Pretoria Mission
• Romania Bucharest Mission (re-opened)

The Church announced a new vision for the Choir going forward. Under the direction of the Choir President Michael O. Levitt, the new vision includes:

• An internationally more diverse Choir. Achieving this includes Choir participants from foreign countries at a 2023 General Conference. Today as the camera pans Choir members during "Music and The Spoken Word," I see an eclectic group of people that are diverse in race, and occupation, who join together for "the love of singing."
• Shorter Choir trips, but the trips will be an annual event. Starting in 2023, the Choir will visit Mexico City June 13-19, 2023.
• The weekly "Music and the Spoken Word program will expand to include "Spanish and Portuguese" Today translations, of the "Spoken Word" are provided in sixteen languages.

The Choir presidency earlier this year announced new "high-level" objectives including:

1. Expand the digital audience
2. Magnify the Choir's missionary role.
3. Ensure the Choir reflects the Church's worldwide mission
4. Increase Worldwide visibility

There are now four tall cranes on temple square, one is just on the west side of the former north-south walkway. Christmas at Temple Square will be very limited due to all of the construction and I suspect there will be some on Temple Square (near the Tabernacle and Assembly Hall) and at the Conference Center. I also saw a few lights forming trees being assembled on the west side of the Church History Library.

Temple - From the outside, it looks much like it did six months ago. However, there is now a large pipe, 6-8 feet in diameter, that appears to run East-West under the center of the temple, below the 'Jack and Bore' pipes. Those pipes have been constructed to hold the temple in the air while the base isolators are installed. The spires on the east side are shrouded in material, suggesting some is being done there that requires temperature control or perhaps just for winter protection.

New Temple Construction (north of the temple) - This area has not progressed much in the last 6 months, beyond the completion of the second floor (from the bottom). I had expected to see much more progress here. This new part of the temple will be the location of two baptismal fonts. The new floor meets the opening of the tunnel to the Conference Center) right in the middle, suggesting access to both the bottom and the floor above it from the conference center parking structure may be in the works.

View from South Temple	A six-foot pipe runs out the west side, below the 'jack and bore' holes
The newly constructed addition to the temple will include offices, locker rooms, and two baptismal fonts, among other things	North Side of the Temple
View of west end of the temple near the Tabernacle	Second floor above ground for the North Temple Addition
Just to the left of the center, you can see the tunnel under North Temple. Note the second floor bisects the tunnel near the center point	Workers near the top of the temple foundation above the 'jack and bore' holes.

Visitor Center - South of the Temple - Excavation in this area started six months ago and now the concrete walls are up to ground level. The Church released more details on the center's nature a few months ago, calling it a “Perpetual Temple Open House.”

The construction entrance off South Temple is in the foreground and the ramp indicates just how far below ground- level excavation was done. To the left behind the red and white barricades is where Southeast Corner of Temple Square, where the old South Visitor Center once stood and it is the new Visitor Center is being constructed.	The new visitor center foundation walls are almost complete as it rises from temple square ground level.

The Garden Area north of the Tabernacle suggests it will be something like the Church Office Building plaza but with more trees and plants. A small building in this area is under onstruction in the northwest corner.

A concrete foundation is being laid down, covered with plastic. The photo shows a walkway into the new area.	A star (or snowflake) design is visible, with what appears to be electric conduits.
A small building is being constructed near the west wall. This building was part of the early renderings of the New Temple Square.	Many construction materials are on site, including rebar, indicating much more concrete to come. A large pile of dirt also remains, suggesting it will be used as fill dirt.

The Church Office Building plaza has progressed. The gate and entrances from State Street are now in place, and much of the central plaza is nearing completion. The area between the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and the Church Administration building is still an entry for construction vehicles. The space between the Relief Society Building and the Church Office Tower is also largely untouched. Views of the work on the main street area is unavailable except in elevated locations (such as uppper floors of the Jospeh Smith Memprial building).

Alleyway along the west side of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building at South Temple	Alleyway along the west side of the Relief Society Building at North Temple
The center gate along State Street to the new Church Office Building Plaza	The fence along State Street is complete for the Church Office Building Plaza

The temple remains surrounded by scaffolding which is attached to the temple's foundation. There is an elevator near the southwest corner and there are stairs in some locations for moving between levels.

Progress on the new underground portion of the temple is proceeding north of the temple. The basement floor is in place, and concrete walls have risen beyond the bottom. Three concrete pumping assist devices are permanently located here, as I've never seen before.

The old North Visitor Center has wholly disappeared. The north wall of Temple Square is gone except for a 20-foot section. A construction truck entry now exists on the north side. The entry is near West Temple extending to the middle of the block. Construction in the northwest corner of Temple Square has started. This area north of the Tabernacle has been designed for gardens, but some building construction has creeped into the site formerly occupied by the North Visitors Center. I also spotted a pile driver at the west end of the area formerly occupied by the visitor's center. Generally, these machines are used to prepare for a tall building or object, but can be used to strengthen weak ground.

Surrprisingly, the plaza that fills the space between the Church Office Building, Church Administration Building, and the Joseph Smith Memorial building is not yet complete. It is still an active construction zone. New landscaping is being installed on the north and east sides of the Church Office Building tower.

Excavation is now starting south of the temple for a new Visitor Center.

Can the Salt Lake Temple be rededicated in 2025, perhaps, but there is a tremendous amount of work yet to complete.

The main street plaza is now closed. Small walkways are provided from the north to the Relief Society building and from the south to the Joseph Smith memorial building. If this lasts through Christmas, there won't be much to "the lights on Temple Square" in 2022.

View from the Northwest Corner of the Temple	The new section north of the temple rises. You can see the tunnel to the conference center on the left side of the photo
Pictured is one of three concrete pump booms on the temple's north side. These help trasport concrete to the desired location. There are three of these on the north side of the temple.	Construction is now taking place where the old North Visitor Center was located.
This is a view of the lower portion of the west end of the temple. The circular holes at the bottom will have steal strands placed through them from side to side. These steel ropes will hold the temple in the air while the base isolators (that guard agaist earthquake dammage) are installed.	The north wall of the temple
The North Visitor’s Center once stood here. Note the new sheet of concrete that has been placed here. The Conference Center is in the background.	Excavation is starting on the south side of the temple for the new Visito's Center.
Spring Flowers on Temple Square - Only found between the Tabernacle and the Assembly Hall and around the Assembly Hall	Temple Square from the Conference Center
Temple Square Tours are now at the Conference Center	Work on the Plaza is ongoing.

During General Conference, the Church announced membership statistics by continent. This data surprised me. Note: You can also drill down into individual countries within a continent. The data source. Here's the continent data:

CONTINENT	Members	% of Total	Missions	% of Total	Temples	% of Total
Worldwide	16,805,400	100%	407	100%	170	100%
North America	9,489,479	56%	174	43%	112	66%
South America	4,232,425	25%	97	24%	21	12%
Europe	500,239	3%	34	8%	13	8%
Asia	1,259,094	7%	45	11%	8	5%
Pacific Islands	587,462	3%	18	4%	10	6%
Africa	736,701	4%	39	10%	5	3%