The COVID-19 Crisis has challenged us to rethink how we go about our every day lives and how we will gather together into the future. Learn about 3 key areas of consideration for your church building that can help you address the needs and concerns of the most vulnerable in your congregation and your surrounding community.
If your church is planning a building or remodel project, one of the most crucial first steps is choosing the right project delivery method. Each method has its characteristic advantages and disadvantages and it’s important to choose a delivery method that best meets the specific needs of your organization. Learn about the pros and cons of the two most common construction delivery methods, and discover a unique hybrid of both models called the Trinity Partnership.
There are many architectural firms that can provide creative design solutions, but creative design alone can be problematic for ministries if it is simply an exercise to show fantastic possibilities that have little chance of getting funded. Reducing the cost of construction must begin at the earliest stages with a design strategy that is focused on delivering innovative concepts that work within the parameters of a ministry’s budget — and can actually get built.
Design choices early on can have a significant impact on the sustainability of your building, property and resources in the future. Although many non-profits cannot justify the high expenses associated with LEED Certification, there are a number of environmentally sustainable design strategies that can reduce life cycle costs and lower the impact on the environment, which allows us to glorify God through our careful stewardship of His creation.
August 2020 – Building God’s Way announced a milestone this week as the company recently began design work on its 900th ministry-based project. Since 1998, BGW has helped ministry organizations across 47 U.S. states and 3 foreign countries to realize their God-given vision through innovative, stewardship-driven design.
Southwest Christian High School in Chaska, MN was selected for publication in the American School & University® 2019 Architectural Portfolio. The project is featured in the November/December 2019 edition of the magazine and also online at www.SchoolDesigns.com. An annual competition honoring education design excellence, the Architectural Portfolio spotlights projects representing today’s most effective learning environments.
As an architect who has worked with hundreds of churches over several decades, I’ve been on the front lines of this massive conceptual shift — especially over the last decade — in the way churches are designed and constructed. From the continued evolution of “third place” gathering areas that foster organic community and have become the new focal point in the church floor plan, to worship spaces that incorporate technology in new and innovative ways, today’s churches are definitely “not your parents’ church”.
While it is not unusual for a church to rent out its social hall, it is unusual for a church to do what Believers did: Plan, erect and dedicate more than 28,000 square feet of space for all kinds of paying events. “My message to the congregation has been that the church is not a building – we are the church. That message reinforces the concept of HUB 757,” said Jamey Stuart, senior pastor at the church. “Our primary purpose is to have our space become a hub of the community as it engages around events like meetings and receptions. We want to be engaging.”
Back in 2013, Brookhaven Church relocated its church to McKinney, Texas, bought some land and started contemplating how new facilities could best represent the community. “We didn’t want to build a facility we would just use for a couple of hours; we wanted to build something that would be a service and a blessing for the community to use all week,” says Glenn Meredith, senior pastor of the church. “We wanted people to look at us and see our church as a place they wanted to come.”
