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Architectural firms are asked to do a lot more than design buildings these days. Church buildings are larger, and congregations are more sophisticated and demanding than ever before. Building permits are more complex, and zoning issues block or delay many church projects. Architects are responding, out of necessity, by offering a much wider range of services than ever before, and they have the computer technology to support it.

Christopher Kidd, president of Christopher Kidd & Associates in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, explains the impact on church architectural firms: "There is an expanding of services, including zoning and site analysis, to extensive consultation on programming—how the function of the ministry relates to building design."

Bill Chegwidden, president of CDH Partners in Marietta, Georgia, agrees. "We have become a full service firm, doing all the engineering, video animation, virtual tours," he says. "Design has gotten a lot more complex and expectations for a successful project have gotten higher and higher." His company has responded to the need for a broader scope of services by bringing more talent in-house. "We work in teams," he says, "because we want to stay ahead of the problems so we become specialists in that area."

Architects are getting involved early in the planning process to help churches evaluate their need for construction before the first plan is drawn. "They used to call us when they were ready to build," says Bruce Wardell of Bruce Wardell Architects in Charlottesville, Virginia. "Now we are focusing on helping them understand whether or not they need to build. Sometimes a renovation or an addition is what they need. It's problem-solving, serving the mission of the church more than simply building a building."

Even after construction is complete, architects stay involved because they are so well equipped to deal with space utilization and maintenance issues. "In some cases for much larger churches, ongoing facility management and annual reviews of mechanical systems are part of the service we provide," says Wardell. Chegwidden meets annually with many of his clients to review their long-range strategic plans and check progress against those plans.

Architects recommend that churches begin with a master building plan, which includes much more than drawings and blueprints. The master building plan matches physical and financial resources to church service and program goals, with an eye to the future. For example, Lefler & Associates in Thousand Oaks, California, helped Christ Community Church in West Covina, California, create a master plan that incorporates an existing adjacent retail center. The retail center will be renovated and converted into classrooms, a parking garage, and a multipurpose room. In Santa Clarita, California, Lefler worked with Grace Baptist Church to create a master plan that includes a 44-acre retreat and youth center, a coffee house, information center, and a natural outdoor amphitheater.

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