A good thing and a God thing’: New Nelson cafe opens in church car park
The owners of a new café operating out of a repurposed shipping container in a Nelson church car park say they hope the site will help foster community connection.
Beth and Nick Schryvers opened Locals Café in the car park next to the All Saints Anglican Church on Vanguard St last week.
The café operates from the original shipping container used by Christchurch’s Kairos Food Rescue which Beth Schryvers founded in 2018 before moving to Nelson.
Schryvers said when she was offered the chance to buy the container, it was a “no-brainer”.
“We knew we could do something with it in Nelson to create community here,“ she said.
Photo: Supplied
The couple, who are members of All Saints, approached the church leadership about placing the container in the car park.
“It was this incredible intersection of independent ideas that all overlapped,” Nick Schryvers said.
Vicar of All Saints, Tim Bustin, said the initiative aligned with the church’s vision.
Photo: Supplied
“We would love the land to be an expression of the call and kaupapa of All Saints, to be a church that’s for the good of the city,” he said.
“Some people will never come into a church, but this gives us an opportunity to engage and encounter the community.”
To secure the land, Bustin said 113 church members pledged funds, raising $340,000 in just 10 days to purchase the car park from two congregation members who had owned it for 14 years.
“People sensed that this could be a good thing and a God thing,” he said.
The church now leases the land to the Schryvers, who also own the Victus Coffee & Eatery on Bridge St, and was exploring bringing additional containers onto the site for other value-aligned businesses or non-profits organisations.
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