The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-day Saints, known as the Mormon Church, will open to the general public tomorrow, 26 August through Saturday, 9 September. The US$25 million temple built between Av. Bolivar and Av. César Nicolás Penson in Santo Domingo will be dedicated on 17 September by the president of the Mormon’s, Gordon B. Hinckley, who will come for the event. The Santo Domingo temple is considered three times larger than most Mormon temples because "the Caribbean community is important to us." The temple was presented to the press on 23 August; President Hipólito Mejía visited on 24 August, and VIPs visited on 25 August. After 9 September only members of the church will have access to the church. The Santo Domingo church is the 99th built by the Mormons around the world. From 26 August to 9 September, church officers expect 100,000 persons to visit. Thereafter, they expect more than 70,000 members from the Caribbean and other countries to visit each year. The massive edifice was built and furnished primarily with the high quality imported construction materials and furniture. Paintings of Dominican beach sites and countryside add a Caribbean touch to the temple that is decorated with Christ-allusive paintings. The Mormon church has an estimated 11 million members around the world.
