Teaching Old Church Buildings New Tricks
By: Eddy Hall

"This building was designed for a congregation of 265," one church member argued at a congregational meeting. "The architect told us so. We can't grow any bigger than that in this building."

Over this gentleman's objection, the congregation went ahead and invited a facilities consultant to help them find ways to make maximum use of their building. A few months later, they had a remodeling and utilization plan that would allow them to grow to 750 with no new construction.

A church in Warsaw, Indiana, which averages about 450 in two worship services, had spent several years studying options for how to accommodate growth. The best option they had come up with involved two additions totaling $4.2 million plus interest. Feeling stuck, they asked a consultant for help.

Instead of requiring millions of dollars for construction, their new facility plan calls for a few hundred thousand dollars of remodeling and some utilizations changes that together provide enough room for attendance to almost double. After that, a $1.1 million multipurpose addition will provide as much growing room as the proposed $4.2 million construction projects would have.

From Single Use to Multiple Use
How is it possible to teach "old church buildings new tricks" like this--to make them serve congregations far larger than those for which they were originally designed? It's possible because of a paradigm shift taking place in the way North American Christians think about, use and design church buildings.

Architects have been trained to design single-use church buildings: the sanctuary is used for worship, classrooms for Sunday school, the fellowship hall for dinners, the gym for recreation. Besides that, sanctuary and class rooms are generally designed with only a single session in mind. When the sanctuary or classrooms approach 80% capacity, it is time to call the architect again.

The new multiple-use paradigm doesn't treat the building as fully utilized until multiple sessions of worship and classes are being filled and most of the building is being used for a variety of ministries at various times.

Architect Ray Bowman, author of When Not to Build and a pioneer in this approach to church facility use, estimates that nine out of every 10 churches that call him thinking they need to build actually have a better, less costly alternative.

What are some of these new tricks that old church buildings can learn?

The Full-Sunday-School Illusion
Most churches, when they call in a facilities consultant, say their Sunday school is full or almost full. In my consulting work, I have learned that this usually means that "we have a class in every or almost every available room."

I recently walked through a church like this during their Sunday school hour. All but two of their classes had room to double or triple their attendance in their present rooms. But because all the rooms were in use, the people considered their Sunday school space full.

To fully use their education space, this church will have to make several changes. They will need to buy lightweight folding tables that children's teachers can easily set up or take down during class. They can then use the same space for both floor and table activities rather than using half the room for each. Supply cabinets on the floor will need to be replaced by wall-mounted cabinets. Small classes taught by solo teachers will need to grow into larger team-taught classes.

With changes like these--plus installing folding walls to create more places for teens and adults to meet--this Sunday school will have plenty of room to double. Before that happens, though, this church will be adding a second worship service and a second Sunday school session. Children's classes will actually have room to quadruple before they need more space.

Too Few Rooms or Too Many Classes?
In York, Pennsylvania, is a growing congregation of 650 that could not be charged with not fully using their classrooms. Their Monday through Friday Child Care Center had long since packed out the available rooms and had a waiting list. The children's Sunday school, junior church and Wednesday evening children's program were all approaching the limits of their space.

Yet a look at their children's ministries showed that 191 volunteer workers were needed to staff the children's Sunday school, junior church and Wednesday evening activities. When I asked the children's pastor, "Do you have 191 people who are called to work in children's ministry?" she immediately expressed frustration at having to recruit workers who she knew were serving out of obligation rather than call, including some poorly qualified for that particular ministry. The results were predictable: regular recruiting hassles, worker burnout and teaching of inconsistent quality.

The solution? The church restructured their three children's programs (Sunday school, junior church and Wednesday evening) into two--one on Sunday and one on Wednesday. Now only half of the children are using the classrooms during each session on Sunday. Between that and a Wednesday night adult programming change, the children's ministries at York now have plenty of room to grow--without spending a penny on new class rooms.

Even more important, though, is the improved quality of their children's Christian education. Rather than needing 191 adults to staff their Sunday morning and Wednesday children's ministries, they now need 60. The people working with children now are the ones whose hearts are in it. And now all those other workers are free to work in the ministries to which God is calling them.

Time, Space and Food
Multiple worship services are at the heart of the multiple-use paradigm, but many church buildings are not well-suited to multiple services. After all, they were designed for single services.
What does a building suitable for double services look like? The main requirement is a large foyer or other fellowship area where those leaving the first service can visit with those arriving for the second service without causing congestion.

One concern here is traffic flow, but something even more important is at stake here. By far the most common objection to adding a second service is, "But then we won't see our friends who go to the other service." When a church ignores this need, its attempt at a second service often fails. So why not give those who attend the two services plenty of opportunity to fellowship with each other?

You can do this by providing three things--time, space, and food. It's not unusual for churches to allow only 15 minutes between services, barely enough time to get from one place to the other. I recommend that between services churches schedule a third ministry event, a half-hour fellowship time when refreshments are served.

The ideal space for this is a fellowship foyer, though a fellowship area farther from the worship space can work, at least temporarily. If a church doesn't have a foyer large enough to comfortably accommodate double services, sometimes the foyer can be enlarged. Adding on a new fellowship foyer is not inexpensive, but it costs far less than building a bigger sanctuary. And, of course, a fellowship foyer is extremely versatile space that can serve a wide range of ministry uses.

The House Next Door
Most older church buildings were not designed for multiple staff. As a result, in a growing church, improvised pastor's offices are often scattered throughout the building, secretaries have too little work space, and the offices may not be welcoming to weekday visitors. If the church owns a parsonage or rent house near the church campus, in many cases, an excellent solution is to convert the house next door into the church office complex. The new office center usually includes a conference room that doubles as a classroom as well as other meeting rooms. Providing a housing allowance for the pastor in lieu of a parsonage is far less hassle--and normally much less expensive--than building new offices.

The Payoff
These are just a few of the new tricks you can teach old church buildings to multiply their capacity to handle growth. The financial benefits of this approach are obvious. Because major construction is postponed, the church buys time to get out of debt then to save up cash for future construction. Just by earning interest on the building fund rather than paying interest on a mortgage, a church can cut construction costs by as much as two-thirds. And since building for multiple-use requires fewer square feet, a church may be able to cut its construction costs by a total of 75% or even more.

The greatest benefit, though, can't be measured in dollars and cents. The real tragedy of unneeded church building programs is that they drain time, money and energy away from ministry. Time after time a growing church has built too big, too soon only to discover that growth stops. Why? Because the church's focus changes from the ministries producing the growth to building and paying for a facility.

When we teach old buildings new tricks, it doesn't just save money; it helps us stay focused on the real work of the church--reaching out in love to hurting people who need the healing and hope only God can give.

Adapted from WHEN NOT TO BUILD: An Architect's Unconventional Wisdom for the Growing Church by Ray Bowman and Eddy Hall (Baker Books).  Used by permission.

Eddy Hall is a senior consultant with Living Stones Associates, www.living-stones.com, a church consulting team that equips churches for healthy growth through integrated planning of ministries, staffing, facilities and finances and through guiding congregations through transitions in church culture.

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The Versatility of Stackable Chairs for Multipurpose Rooms in Churches
By Mike Sammons

Chairs providing multipurpose use within a church have almost become a necessity in today’s economy. The need for flexible, stackable seating products allows congregations to take advantage of multipurpose room applications, yet provide seating comfort during worship services.

Designing seating to comfortably serve many objectives and conveniently stack when not in use is not an easy task.  Comfort is more than a word; it’s key to long-term customer satisfaction. Building in durable comfort in every chair is as important as the fabric style chosen.  

All chairs do not feel the same. Some chairs provide more comfort than others. When it comes to comfort, given a choice between a hard pew and a properly designed and constructed chair, most people will favor the well-built, ergonomically shaped chair. This may be one of the factors contributing to a national trend towards use of flexible seating in new churches and those refurbishing their worship seating areas.

Flexible seating is defined as seating capable of multiple uses and configurations. A multipurpose seating approach allows churches to make more efficient use of their facilities. It’s not unusual today to find the main worship area being used for musical performances, evangelistic theater, special interest meetings and other innovative applications of a space traditionally reserved for worship use only a few times during the week.

Chair selection involves a number of factors.

1. Outer Construction
Flexible seating is available in metal or wood frame constructions. For spaces that require frequent seating configuration changes, stackable steel frame designs with a thick powder-coated finish offer the best solution.

 2. Comfort
Evaluating comfort is a critical part of selecting flexible seating. Comfort is key to long-term satisfaction and begins with the frame design.  To appeal to a range of human heights, the combined seat height and foam thickness should total about 18 inches. Less seat height or seat foam thickness causes uncomfortable pressure no matter the cushioning materials.

3. Cushions
Material selection is also important. Give the chair a “one hour test.” Then select that one with the firmest cushioning that will be able to provide adequate support after a few hours of use. In the long run, the softest cushion may not be able to provide adequate support and sink to the seat base, causing discomfort and more rapid fabric wear.
 
4. Style
Flexible chair styles for churches don’t have to look boring. Several companies offer styles for use in the most conservative sanctuaries, the most contemporary worship facilities and everything in-between.

5. Fabric
A vast number of fabric choices are available.

6. Color
Color is considered to be one of the most important considerations, and, thus, many churches use the services of a professional interior decorator to coordinate carpet, walls, fabric and chair frame color.

When selecting flexible seating, consideration should be given to the offering of a free sample chair for use during your evaluation process, customer service and satisfaction, warranties on the chair, fabric and foam, as well as the ability to deliver your chair order on time.

Mike Sammons is vice president of Church Chair, www.churchchair.com.

Sidebar
Room Dividers Help Make the Most of Your Space and Dollars
By Rich Maas

Managing the spacial needs of the varied groups within a church is not an easy task.  “Change is the only thing that is constant” is truer now in 2005 than ever. More and more demand is being put on pastors to make the best use of their existing space, and the trend is not about to stop.

Some of this change and the inevitable demand for space take years to develop. For example, very few churches sponsored daycare programs 20 to 30 years ago. As our society changes and more households became two-income families, thousands of churches have begun daycare programs to service this “new” need for their congregation.  Where are these programs held? In the multipurpose room, of course.

Other changes occur seemingly overnight. When a new subdivision opens up near a church, dozens of families can become new members. Suddenly there is a need for two, three or more Sunday School classrooms that did not exist only several weeks before.  Where are these classes usually held? Likewise, in the multipurpose room.

What are church administrators using to help manage the increasing demands for use of the multipurpose room? 

Portable, flexible room dividers have rapidly become the tool of choice for church administrators across the country.

For example, the members of Living Lord Lutheran Church in Bartlett, Illinois, decided to add a daycare program to service the needs of their congregation. Separate areas would be needed for storytelling, snacks, napping, etc. The multipurpose room also would be used for a variety of different church programs during the evening and, of course, for Sunday School on the weekends.  They chose dividers that would be easy to set up and take down, be uniquely flexible and tackable, and provide some sound absorbency.

Can a gymnasium be considered a “multipurpose” room?  It not only can be-- it should be.  Part of the responsibility of a congregation is to be good stewards of the assets that the Lord has given to them. With construction costs running in excess of $100 per square foot, it is not only good business sense, but also good common sense to make the best use of every inch of space in your church.  This remains true whether that space is a multipurpose room, fellowship hall, family life center, basement or even the gymnasium.

Canaan Baptist Church in St. Louis, Missouri, had experienced tremendous growth in a very short period of time. In this situation, the church not only needed flexible room dividers, but also cabinets to store Sunday School materials, a markerboard to write lessons upon, and a desktop. These products easily created 20 Sunday School classrooms in their gymnasium every Sunday.

When class is over, the dividers are folded back into the cabinets and rolled away. The youth group then begins their basketball program minutes later. During the week, the dividers have a multipurpose life of their own as they are used to help create spaces for Awana, the men’s club, Bible Study and more.

Portable room dividers provide church administrators with an effective tool to help more easily manage the demands for the constantly changing needs for space in their multipurpose areas of their church.  In addition, they help do it in a cost-effective, economical fashion. Flexible portable room dividers are here to stay. After all, “change is the only thing that is constant.”

Rich Maas is president of Screenflex, www.screenflex.com.

Sidebar
Selecting Tables for a Multi-Purpose Room
By Bryan Standley

With so many table options on the market today, buyers are often faced with a perplexing array of choices. When selecting tables for your multi-purpose church facility, here are a few things to consider.

Convenience and Ease of Use
If frequent set-ups or takedowns are required, nothing beats a folding leg table. This popular table style is especially easy to handle and store, and provides a high degree of flexibility in multi-purpose room settings.

Availability of Sizes
Folding leg tables are available in a wide variety of shapes, including circular, rectangular, square, quarter-round, half-round, serpentine and more. Be sure to ask vendors about table seating capacities to help decide which table shape and size works best for your facility. Some vendors offer room-planning services, so calculate the square footage of your multi-purpose area so the vendor can help you choose the correct number of tables for your available space.

Table Durability
Table durability varies from vendor to vendor. While some table brands work well for light, occasional usage, other brands are better for heavy or frequent use. Be sure to ask vendors about tabletop impact strength, load capacity, and corner and edge durability. Additionally, if you are looking for heavier use tables, consider those with metal-to-metal leg mounts that tend not to loosen with use.

Multi-Purpose Use
Plan ahead to determine the table style and size you’ll require. For example, if the room is to be used for conferences, lectures or cafeteria style dining, you may find that rectangular tables work best. For more elegant dining events or receptions, round or specialty sized tables may fit the bill. You may also discover that you can successfully mix and match a combination of table shapes and sizes.

Other Considerations
Here are a few additional items to consider as you work with table vendors.

• Are preferred sizes available?                     
• Do vendor’s table color options match your decor?            
• Do tables allow for wheelchair access?       
• Are the tables strong?                    
• Are the tables lightweight and easy to move? 
• Are the leg attachments secure enough to handle repeated set-ups and takedowns? 
• Are the tables designed and built for heavy-duty use or are they meant for light, occasional use?
• What is the warranty? Be aware of any important exclusions, return shipping costs, etc.       
• What is the overall cost of ownership?
• Does the vendor’s customer service department respond quickly to inquiries?                     
• Is the vendor’s business stable?                  
• What optional features are needed, and are they available from the vendor?            
• Are carts available for transportation and storage?  

Provide vendors with as much detail as possible regarding your multi-purpose set-up. This will help them identify the best solution for you. As you then compare vendor information, you’ll be prepared to select the right tables for your multi-purpose church facility.

Bryan Standley is marketing manager for Mity-Lite, www.mitylite.com.

Product Roundup

Val-U-Line Chairs
BioFit Engineered Products has announced Val-U-Line stackable chairs for durability, versatility, easy storage and cost-effectiveness in church multipurpose applications. Val-U-Line chairs provide the ruggedness that is important in general-purpose stackable seating.  The chairs feature a steel frame and seat and backrest of tough polypropylene.  Val-U-Line chairs are warranty-backed for five years. BioFit’s Val-U-Line series offers value in a good basic seating selection. Three models of stackable chairs are available for parish meeting halls and other multipurpose needs.  Two of the models are available with cloth upholsteries. The color selection includes a choice of fabric options, polypropylene seat and backrest colors, and steel tubular frames. Glides are standard on the stackable chairs for greater mobility. BioFit offers glides for either hard floors or carpets, as well as a glide style for concrete and outdoor use.
www.biofit.com

Panel Systems Manufacturing, Inc.
Panel Systems Manufacturing, Inc.’s floor track system makes it possible to support the weight of heavy room dividers on the floor instead of suspending them from the ceiling. For users, that means it is no longer necessary to install very expensive ceiling beams or braces that sometimes cost as much as or more than the room divider itself.  Panel System’s SA-1000 floor track is easily removed in a few minutes and can be stored neatly in an opening behind the panel stack. Floors are clear and free of obstacles when the divider is not being used.  
www.roomdividers.org

Woodfold
Flexible space is vital to today’s church as it meets the varied needs of the congregation and community.  Woodfold’s accordion and roll-up doors provide instant walls when needed. Custom-made Woodfold accordion doors are available in a variety of models to provide sight and acoustic space division.  Suspended from an overhead track, doors are offered in heights to 12-feet and are easily opened and closed.  Woodfold’s hardwood roll-up doors store conveniently overhead and are ideal for pass-through dividers between kitchens and fellowship halls.   Since 1957, Woodfold accordion and roll-up doors have provided “instant flexibility” for all types of applications.  All doors are custom-manufactured to size by the employee-owners of Woodfold.
www.woodfold.com

VersiPanel and VersiFold by MityLite
Mity-Lite VersiPanel and VersiFold portable partitions can make worship areas more versatile than ever before. The portable partitions are freestanding and flexible--offering superior sound control and pleasing visual effects. VersiPanel and VersiFold partitions meet the floor directly; blocking sights and sounds from other areas.  Either wall system can easily be used to create additional office space, portable classrooms, temporary meeting areas and more. Setup is quick and simple, providing a no-tools approach to designing and re-arranging a dynamic area. VersiPanel partitions are fabric-covered, semi-rigid, freestanding panels users can bend and shape. VersiFold partitions feature a safe, non-pinching design that comes with optional chalkboard or whiteboard accessories. Systems can be used separately or together for added versatility. 
www.mitylite.com

Versatile, Adaptable, Portable Panels from Alfax
Alfax offers versatile, adaptable and portable panels for multipurpose rooms. One of the smartest ways to partition large areas is to use heavy-duty panels. They are as at-home in semi-permanent set-ups as they are on the move. Each panel is 2 inches thick, is fully tackable, and comes in either standard or acoustical sound absorption.  And since the panels have radius edge frames, you can create any angle you need with the hardware that’s supplied. If mobility is important, order partition feet with locking casters. These are available in seven easy-care 100% polyester fabric colors. Acoustical panels are rated Class A fire-retardant for safety. 
www.alfaxfurniture.com/products

Church Chair
Church Chair's exclusive 23-inch, extra wide seat is available on both the Design Stacker I and the Design Stacker II chairs. The generous width and comfort of this extra wide seat gives worshippers the true feeling of sitting in first class, rather than in a small coach seat.  Church Chair offers durability, elegance and quality, as well as ergonomic design technology to assure a lifetime of comfort in church seating. 
www.churchchair.com

Infinity Collection by Chairtex
The Infinity Collection features Chairtex’s 3.5-inch-thick seat with a rolled front edge and Dual Density Opti-Foam, which makes for a particularly comfortable chair. Options include bookracks, book and card pockets, ganging hooks and a large assortment of different frame finishes and upholstery materials giving churches choices to meet their particular needs. Chairtex has been manufacturing a complete line of furniture for churches, including pew chairs, fellowship chairs, Sunday School furniture, folding tables and accessories, since 1964.
www.chairtex.com

Screenflex
With more than 100,000 portable room dividers in use today, Screenflex is a proven method church leaders use to help them divide any area quickly and effortlessly. Designed by church architects, Screenflex Portable Room Dividers are available in three complete lines, several heights, lengths and a host of colors. Screenflex products can help make managing your facility easier. Screenflex Portable Room Dividers are simply the world’s most versatile Sunday School dividers.
www.screenflex.com

Curtition
The Chameleon Series from Curtition will blend with the surrounding environment. It features aluminum ceiling guard and offers normal options such as concealed or surface mounted track, radius construction, sliding jambs for pocket applications, floating posts for multi-room applications, electric operation and movable posts for extra flexibility. The Curtition Silencer Series Operable Walls are top-supported, acoustically rated and built to individual job specifications. Curtition makes single-panel walls, paired-panel walls and continuously hinged panel walls. They have large corner gussets on their frames and use 20-ounce vinyl cover material for extra durability.
www.curtition.com

Commercialite by McCourt Manufacturing
Commercialite is one of the strongest, lightest, most affordable indoor/outdoor folding tables on the market, offering roughly half the cost of traditional plastic folding tables. The Blow Mold technology allows McCourt to produce polyethylene plastic tops to resist heat, stains, chemicals and physical damage. The U.S. Steel frame with wishbone folding leg system bolts through the table top, not just into it, allowing the Commercialite to support more than 3,500 pounds. A wide variety of sizes and options are available.
www.mccourtmfg.com

Lightweight Blow Molded Folding Tables by Tablesnchairs.com
These sturdy Lightweight Blow Molded Plastic Folding Tables are the perfect solution for the banquet hall or cafeteria. Use them indoors or outdoors or anywhere that calls for an affordable, lightweight, weather-resistant and highly durable folding table. Round tables hold a maximum of 2,000 evenly distributed pounds, while rectangular tables will hold a maximum of 1,500 pounds. All tables are 29 inches off the floor, with a tabletop thickness of 1.75 to 2 inches. All legs are made of 1 1/8-inch, round 18-gauge steel. Tables come with a five-year NPS warranty.
www.tablesnchairs.com

Southern Aluminum’s T2 Table
The new T2 table is no exception. As a training table, the T2 features an 18-inch table top surface with a 12-inch modesty panel and off-set seminar legs making it ideal for meetings. By raising the modesty panel, the T2 becomes a 30” table that can support up to 3,000 pounds of distributed weight. Available with your choice of more than 200 laminates, the T2 is the only table you will need for all your meeting and banquet needs. 
www.alulite.com