Winning Church Designs

These outstanding additions seamlessly blend past, present, and future

by Gayla R. Postma

Nobody likes things that clash. Your congregation probably will not be pleased if you ask to build a funky modern addition next to their historic stone church. You may need the space, but you don't want the addition to do visual harm to your original facility.

So, it's not surprising that when your church talked to architects and builders about their best additions, including some with award-winning designs, they unanimously recommended that a well-done addition should take design cues from your church's existing structure.

"Someone who drives by or flies over your church a year later shouldn't be able to tell what was built first," says Rich Colavita, senior vice president of Myler Church Buildings in Crawfordsville, Indiana. "It all should fit together."

"The building was old," Ralston says, "so we matched the period architecture with a brick veneer on the new section and then shingled the roof and built a brick tower to match." The ad dition added new restrooms, a women's parlor, and a chapel to the oldest building. Ralston also put in a corridor that allows access to the first addition at the back of the church so people will not have to go through the sanctuary.

Doug Stephens of Hull-Stephens and Associates in Swartz Creek, Michigan, also started his planning with the original building when he designed a million-dollar addition for St. John Lutheran Church in Romeo, Michigan.

"St. John's building is more than 100 years old," Stephens says, "and we had to make sure the new part would blend with the original." To do that, he incorporated design details like arched windows, brick detailing, and steep roof lines that are characteristic of the original building. The addition acts as a large gathering area directly outside the sanctuary. Stephens says it functions as a combination foyer and fellowship hall. New offices, accessible bathrooms, an elevator, and a gymnasium were also included within the addition.

A large stained-glass window, located on the side of the church where the addition was to be built, posed a logistical problem, Stephens says. Be cause the window comes quite low to the ground, he chose to design a small courtyard that opens into the new foyer with glass doors. This decision allowed the window to re main intact. Though it is very small, Stephens says, the courtyard is cleverly landscaped, featuring a waterfall and a pond complete with fish.

Bruce Wardell of Bruce Wardell Architects in Charlottes ville, Virginia, has won three awards for the addition he designed for Temple Beth Israel in Charlottesville. Temple Beth Israel's original gothic-style building is more than 100 years old, making it the tenth-oldest synagogue in the country. All three awards Wardell won noted how the addition complements the original structure.

"We didn't want to overpower the original building," Wardell says. "The addition has a modern interpretation of the gothic style that works in concert." This building addition provides an extra 14,000 square feet of educational and multipurpose space to the synagogue and includes a library and chapel.

The way in which War dell chose to link the new and old buildings impressed the Virginia chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). In their award, they noted the two-story glass trellis that connects the buildings and ex poses one side of the original synagogue, with its stained-glass windows, to the interior of the addition. The Virginia Masonry Council noted with its award the way in which brick was used for both the interior and exterior of the new building and how the detailing relates to the detailing on the original building.

The Alliance for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities gave Wardell an award for the way the addition actually enhanced the original structure. "The synagogue is one block from the historic Court Square in Charlottesville," Wardell says. "We created an exterior courtyard that is now part of the street atmosphere in this urban area. Our plan was to reinforce the stature of the original building, actually making it more important architecturally than it was before the addition was put on."

When Century Builders, Houston, Texas, put an addition on the World of Pentecost Church in Austin, Texas, in 1997, the existing buildings were all repainted and some were reroofed to match the addition. The old building really doesn't show. Henry Kohlleffel, vice president of business development for Century Builders, says the addition includes a 2,000-seat worship center, a nursery complex, and a connecting multipurpose foyer area.

The church had an unusual restriction to work under, literally. Because it is located right behind the Austin airport, Century Builders had to accommodate a very strict height restriction. All the seats in the auditorium were put on one level, resulting in a fan-shaped auditorium. It's actually quite an intimate worship space as the farthest seat from the pulpit is only 93 feet away, Kohlleffel says.

The key to this structure is the use of wood, Pappas says, as it creates a sense of warmth for the space. He also used light as a design element. A clerestory (an outside wall that rises above an existing roof and contains windows) allows natural light to filter in from the highest point in the auditorium, appropriately positioned directly above the altar area. "It's an old gothic trick," Pappas says.

David Bossart of Bossart Builders in Flanders, New Jersey, was recognized for his renovation of Hope Chapel Church in Pine Hill, New Jersey. The Community Builders Association of New Jersey proclaimed the addition, "Best Commercial Renovation." The judges were impressed by the uniqueness of the church design.

"Many builders do not have the background in church construction and are not skilled in space planning for a church," Bossart says. "Most do not understand some of the unique parts of a church, such as the baptistry."

Bossart, an independent dealer for church specialists Barden and Robeson Corp oration, managed the 6,000 square-foot addition, which includes a 300-seat sanctuary with cathedral ceiling, new restrooms, class rooms, an accessible en trance, and a courtyard. The building has a cultured stone exterior, dimensional roof, skylights, and a 12-foot glass cross with back lighting. The renovation also incorporates state-of-the-art audio and lighting systems.

"I don't think churches are looking to spend a lot on nice design," says Jim Avery of Sprung Instant Structures. "You need an addition that will meet the program requirement."

Avery says most of Sprung's business comes from putting up additions next to established churches. "It's churches that al ready exist and need to expand that come to us," he says. "Their philosophy is to put the money in to the programs not the building." Sprung offers stressed-membrane structures that are fully insulated, relocatable, and can be quickly assembled.

Doug Jurney of Ceco Building Systems says his company, based in Columbus, Mississippi, builds or adds to 150 churches a year using their pre-engineered metal technology.

"If you are in the upper one-third of churches that can afford to spend a lot of money, then by all means, get the best," Jurney says. "But for the rest of churches, there is always going to be a cost tradeoff."

Building with metal is actually very popular and cost-efficient for churches. The metal industry built over 1,100 churches in the United States in 1999, Jurney says. Metal construction is especially efficient if your church wants to add a structure like a gymnasium or recreation/fellowship hall.

Jurney says that masonry and other conventional materials are often combined with metal to soften the look. "You need aesthetic correlation between the original building and the new structure," he says. "You can do a metal multipurpose building with brick on the lower third that matches the brick on the old building."

Just like any other addition, a metal addition should have architectural tie-ins to your existing structure, Jurney says.

However you choose to add space to your church, you'll need to approach the decision weighing a number of factors. Ultimately, only your church can determine what is most important.

Gayla R. Postma (gpostma@attcanada.ca) is a freelance writer living in Morrisburg, Ontario.

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