church case study

  Lakeland Reformed Church has embraced outdoor play at Lakeland Creative Beginnings Child Care with a number of outdoor musical instruments inspired by their faith. The church, located in Vicksburg, Michigan, recently purchased the Rainbow Chimes from Percussion Play, a leading manufacturer of outdoor musical instruments that has seen a steep increase this year in

  Genoa Church in Westerville, Ohio, partnered with Paragon 360 in the construction and design of their new worship center. This rapidly growing congregation had reached the maximum capacity of their multipurpose gymnasium and was ready to create the space and atmosphere that they wanted. The Paragon 360 team worked with them from the very

  When faced with shelter-in-place regulations amid the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, Westminster Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, Delaware, like many churches around the world, decided to shift from in-person gatherings on Sundays to recorded services so churchgoers could watch from home. The initial offerings relied on existing audio and video equipment, which was more

  The story of Milford United Methodist Church is the story of a creative team of dedicated church members who saw the loss of their 88-year-old traditional church building to fire as an opportunity to bring Christ to more of the residents of Otsego County, New York. Led by Chairwoman Lola Rathbone, with the support

  In Columbia, South Carolina, Pastor Travis Greene and his congregants at Forward City Church believe they have found their ideal new location to honor God and build a community—and the size, location, and price tag were all perfect. But, how do you go about converting a big box store into a reverent place of

  Hermitage Hills Baptist is a church based in Nashville, Tennessee. For the last three years, Mike Brown, the facility manager, has been serving the church and working to improve the campus. We interviewed Brown about his experience working with PCE. How did the church first hear about Power of Clean Energy? When I started

  Multipurpose space has long been a buzzword for church leadership. But, as the needs of modern congregations grow and expand, incorporating multipurpose space effectively requires creativity and innovation. When leveraged correctly, multipurpose space can foster community, increase the efficiency of a church building, and promote cost savings. Here are a few examples of unique

  In 1952, Christ Episcopal Church of Reading, Pennsylvania, had a series of 51 Mondrian-style windows installed in their attached Parish Hall. The original 60” h. x 38” w. windows featured a single pane, stained glass and metal frames design that was visually interesting. However, over time, they had lost their functionality, becoming drafty and

  By Jim Wickizer Working to expand its online offerings beyond audio webcast, Saint Thomas Church in New York, New York, began filming video recordings of its services with a one-man video team for its extensive religious community. The original webcast production process ended up being a laborious and time-intensive endeavor, taking up to 15

  St. Richard’s Episcopal Church has been a part of the Round Rock, Texas, urban fabric for decades. It is a well-established entity in the city’s community, known by many as the “Pumpkin Patch Church” because of the 10,000 pumpkins that decorate its front lawn facing Hwy 79 every October. This annual fundraiser pumpkin sale

  Just Add Power, a leader in video-over-IP distribution, has announced that its Ultra HD over IP system has been installed at the new Light of Christ Lutheran Church (LOC) Worship Center in Algonquin, Illinois. Just Add Software, a developer of configuration and control solutions for the Just Add Power platform, utilized the system to

  The beautiful new St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Friendship, Wisconsin, is the culmination of the congregation’s nearly 15-year commitment to the community and their five-year plan to construct a new building on property they purchased across from the Adams County Fairgrounds. The finished product is an attractive 7,500-square-foot wood-framed building that was completed

  When the pandemic hit, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church of Whitestone in Queens, New York, was in need of emergency fundraising. For a solution, they turned to Cave Company, a 116-year-old company based in New York, run by third-generation owner Gregory Cave for the past 40 years. They selected the company’s flagship product, Tree

  From Temporary Facility to Permanent Spiritual Home Church on the Move’s South Broken Arrow campus was struggling with their temporary facility, which was impeding the growth of their ministry. They needed more parking and kids’ classrooms. The church found an existing 24,000-square-foot space in a shopping center that, when finished, will give them the

  When Don Shelley of the First Rowlett United Methodist Church in Texas decided it was finally time to replace five portable boom-arm mics that had been purchased more than 20 years earlier, he figured he had really got his money’s worth. The old mics had started to show wear and recently began emitting interference

  By Rodney James I received a call one morning from a gentleman who asked if we could bid on constructing a metal building for a local church. Since we do not bid projects, my first instinct was to apologize and decline, but something inside my spirit told me to ask some questions. What unfolded

  Bidwell Presbyterian Church in Chico, California, has many digital offerings, including a mobile app and live video of its worship services available to all – offerings that went from impressive to critical during the COVID-19 global pandemic. “About two years ago, we looked to video to enhance what we’re already doing, and start being

  Buildings don’t grow churches, but a well-crafted building solution can have a huge impact on a church’s ability to effectively carry out its mission. As one of the fastest growing and largest multi-site churches in America, Lake Pointe Church had found significant success in growing its ministry across multiple communities. In the growing Dallas

  Calvary Chapel church, located in Hemet, California, serves as a gathering place for worship, scripture and song among the San Jacinto Valley community. Hosting a wide range of events, from Sunday services to community happenings, church leadership saw a need to expand the facility’s stage area and functionality to accommodate performers and guests comfortably

  Western Specialty Contractors – San Francisco Branch, partnered with Sika Corp., were honored virtually with a 2020 International Concrete Restoration Institute (ICRI) Award of Merit (Special Projects category) for restoration of the First United Methodist Church of Palo Alto. The ICRI conducts an awards program each year to honor and recognize outstanding projects in

  Organized in 1876, this congregation of Methodists in northeast Tarrant County in Texas was known as Woodlawn Church and then Grange Hall Church before building their first sanctuary across Main Street on a site where they have been meeting ever since. They were served by circuit-riding pastors until 1944. As the town of Euless

  By April 2020, Brown Memorial Baptist Church had already lost several parishioners to COVID-19 and decided to move all of its activities online. It would be nearly seven months before anyone other than staff members would enter the church, which often hosted 450 to 600 worshippers on a Sunday. That included one of the

  A fresh wash of dynamic light from Elation Fuze Pendant house downlights has helped transform The First Family/First Baptist Church’s sanctuary from a more ordinary space with uneven illumination to a modern-looking house of worship more reflective of today’s contemporary worship. Seeking to upgrade its more traditional house lighting to something more state of

  Topeka Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas, needed more space to accommodate its growth, and the addition of an annex proved to be only a temporary solution. The recent construction of a brand-new building not only provided much-needed capacity, but also a modern design that makes it stand out in its community. “We love it,

  Coronavirus cases are on the rise once again. To prevent a rise in cases, it’s important to implement effective and easy solutions to maintain health safety within churches as we continue to move forward in the COVID-19 era. Early this month, Indiana, specifically the Fisher community, had seen spikes of COVID-19 cases. The Fishers

  A former J. C. Penney department store, built in the 1950s, was adapted to accommodate a growing congregation in New Jersey. Located on the western edge of downtown Dover, the building was home to a flag factory that had been closed for about five years. The store building was converted into a church, which

  Church of the Highlands, a multi-site megachurch headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, recently engaged Adorama Business Solutions, a premier technology resource for corporate, educational, and government institutions, to procure its AV equipment for video production needs. The added inventory has empowered Church of the Highlands to remotely respond to the needs of its congregants through

  While stay-at-home orders have decreased physical attendance at churches over the past year, live streaming has given churches the opportunity to reach a much wider viewership. John Volinsky, campus pastor at Bayside Church in California, spoke to this opportunity and said that “most people that come to Bayside actually first watched our services online.”

For nearly three decades, Christ Presbyterian Church in Carlsbad, California, worshiped in a fellowship hall with dreams of one day building a sanctuary. Rather than building new, domusstudio architecture teamed with the committee to remodel the existing fellowship hall into a beautiful worship space that still meets the needs of a multi-purpose space used for

  Founded in 1976 and nestled in Denton, Texas, Denton Bible Church is a non-denominational church that averaged 4,000 congregants each Sunday across its three services. As the demand for digital content and streaming grew and the need for quality video for the church increased, Denton Bible Church sought to replace its outdated camera system

  The inclusive nature of the Trinity Episcopal Church congregation in Marble Falls, Texas, is exemplified by openness, informality, and connectedness to the surrounding community and the rural setting in the heart of the Hill Country. The desire to reinforce these qualities formed the core of the congregation’s mission as they began the process of building a

  Asbury United Methodist Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma, needed to make a change. They had completed a ground-up, extensive $27 million campus in 2004, the largest Methodist church building project in the United States. However, church leadership still felt that their congregation was too scattered. At the time, Asbury served a multigenerational congregation with 8,000

  Although church attendance has been down due to the pandemic, churches and businesses are still investing in projects of all kinds. Ridgecrest Baptist Church chose to do this project to help reach more and more people of all demographics. While it is helping them during the pandemic, it will also continue to help them

  In the late 1980s, a grassroots effort of immigrants established The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Des Plaines, Illinois, and a decade later, it was officially declared a sister site to the Basilica in Mexico City. Located on a 122-acre campus shared with Maryville Academy, owned by the Archdiocese of Chicago, The

  Following the visionary leadership of the pastoral staff at Crossway Church, TONO Architects developed a facility master planning strategy carefully stewarding the church’s property near Millersville, Pennsylvania. Situated on 76 acres of rolling farmland, the plan conceives of a village of worship, educational, gathering and administrative building components echoing the historic agricultural use of

  With 350 to 400 congregants, Boulevard Baptist Church in Anderson, South Carolina, is part of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. About 60 percent of its members are ages 50 and older, and 30 percent are younger families. The tech-savvy church has a long history of live-streaming its worship services every week—even before COVID-19. Problem When

  Crosswater Church in Nocatee, Florida, had been worshiping in a 600-seat auditorium constructed as Phase 1 of a multi-phased project. Crosswater Church recently partnered with LIVE Design Group to design the next phase of their facility. The primary feature of the project, opened in June 2020, is a 1,200-seat Worship Center with stadium seating

  When Community West Church in Richmond, Virginia, made the decision to design and build a new space, they turned to John 1:14: “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.” (The Message). Community West Church didn’t want to create merely a space for people to get away from the world to

  Crisis has a way of causing us to reflect deeply on the things in life that we hold dear to our hearts. In many instances, crisis reveals that some of the things we’ve been holding on to perhaps weren’t really that important, and the aspects of life we relegated to the corner were actually

  GT Church, a multisite church with two locations in Pennsylvania, recently enlisted Adorama Business Solutions — a premier technology resource for corporate, educational, and government institutions — to upgrade its production equipment and processes to enable High Definition (HD) live streaming and recorded broadcasts of its services. Eager to make dynamic, engaging, and artful

  Copper Creek Church started in 2007 as a satellite campus of First Presbyterian Church in Champaign, Illinois. After 5 years, they felt led to establish the satellite campus as a new church plant. And on September 9, 2012, Copper Creek Church was officially commissioned as a new church. So often, those in ministry experience

  In 2019, Olive Baptist Church in Pensacola, Florida, made the decision to upgrade both their stage and house lighting systems in their main sanctuary, a huge undertaking that meant replacing over 600 lighting fixtures. “We decided to replace every tungsten light that illuminated in the room with an LED fixture,” said Bobby Taylor, tech

  The National Association of Church Design Builders recently awarded ATURA Architecture the Industry Award for Innovation for its design of the Grace Church Fellowship Hall Addition. With this annual award, NACDB recognizes ATURA for excellence and the highest level of quality in its design and services in the category of Innovation. The project known

  Since 1964, Grace Polaris Church in Columbus, Ohio, has seen a rapid increase in their congregation from a group of 30 to now serving over 2,000 members. As Grace Polaris’ congregation continued to grow, their need for a new worship center increased, and in 2018, they started construction on a new space. They turned

  In Lakewood, Washington, The Lake City Community Church family places great value on worshiping God with our lives, serving one another through community and discipleship, and serving others in the world as Jesus served us. In an effort to support their mission of advancing God’s Kingdom by making fully devoted followers of Christ in

  By Eric Torrey City Road Chapel United Methodist Church in Madison, Tennessee, started with the building of a house of worship in 1848. The church moved to a new location in 1872. After that building burned down in 1899, a new church was built at the present site. Since then, the church has continued

  Foothills Church exists to develop mature disciples of Christ in relational environments. The church was planted in 2009, and today, it is one of the fastest-growing churches in East Tennessee. The church hosts approximately 2,000 people weekly at its two Sunday morning worship experiences at its campus in Maryville, Tennessee. Maryville-based commercial construction firm

  Grace Church in Bainbridge, Georgia, is a non-denominational community church and home to a weekly congregation of more than 200 people. Mitch Hines, worship & children’s pastor, has been part of the Grace Church community for eight years and works to help the church provide a worship service that is fun, enjoyable and community

  When Centerburg Free Will Baptist Church in Centerburg, Ohio, decided to build a new worship facility, the goal was not only to meet immediate needs for more space, but also to support future growth. Located in the village of Centerburg, Ohio, in the geographical center of the state, the church was established in 1952.

  As one of the fastest growing churches in the United States, Action Church has become a community fixture in local Orlando areas, including Oviedo, Sanford and Winter Garden. Most recently, Action Church expanded its reach when it opened its newest location in Winter Park, Florida, as its first large, non-mobile location. “We exist here

  Dedicated to creating a welcoming and authentic relationship with their congregation, Bannockburn Church is a sanctuary filled with encouragement and bonded through a common faith. Located near Austin, Texas, the church recently made the decision to renovate their outdated production design behind the worship environment, and they needed a partner to make the design

  Atlanta architecture firm CDH Partners designed a new church for First Baptist Church of Jacksonville that provides everything the congregation needs to fulfill their ministries, invite new members and adapt for growth. In 2016, First Baptist Church of Jacksonville, Florida, was looking to expand their outreach to the greater metro area. Nocatee, a planned

  In order to achieve a flexible tally communication between its legacy and new production equipment, First Baptist Church of Jacksonville, Florida, recently integrated TSL Products’ TallyMan control system into its control room upgrade. With four distinct campuses across the city, FBC JAX was specifically looking for a means of integrating a new Ross Ultrix

  A relatively new church (founded in 2013), City Church is deeply committed to bringing spiritual, social, and cultural renewal to the city of Evansville, Indiana. The church discovered an appropriate home in a former church facility in downtown Evansville, with Champlin Architecture providing design services to renovate this large structure to suit the nondenominational

Today, churches are increasingly built with acoustics in mind, to address the acoustic challenges associated with larger and more complex structures featuring high angular ceilings, tall blank walls, large windows, decorative architectural features, and significant variations in size from one room to another. And, in addition to the challenges of the church structure, today’s religious

West County Christian Church in Chesterfield, Missouri, is a large religious and educational complex that The Korte Company designed and built. They master planned the facility to eventually contain up to 50,000 square feet. The overall site provides parking for more than 400 cars and contains visitor parking, an entry drop-off area, a playground, and

Immanuel Nashville is a 10-year-old church on the west side of the famous music city, and its rapid growth recently inspired a move to a bigger, 1,000-seat sanctuary. Although its services are rooted in a traditional approach, Immanuel Nashville also stages a full band and blends its traditional hymns with more contemporary music. After making

The new, 34,500-square-foot St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Louisville, Kentucky, expresses the welcoming, inclusive nature of the parish community through the use of materials and forms that reflect the campus’s natural surroundings, express a strong spiritual procession, and celebrate the parish’s patron saint. The building stands on axis with the approaching road, furthering the mission

Charlotte-based Elevation Church now has 19 campuses around North Carolina, all with very high production values. Each of the locations has its own worship band, and services are streamed from Elevation’s broadcast location to its satellite locations and the Internet during worship experiences each weekend. About four years ago, one of the technical volunteers at

Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Saint Paul, Minnesota, is an architectural landmark in the Highland Park neighborhood. PCL Construction worked collaboratively with church representatives and the design team to expand the original 1950s colonial church with an 18,000-square foot-addition that complements the original design. The addition includes a series of new classrooms, a vaulted fellowship

Like most of the music world, C3 Church in Clayton, North Carolina, wanted to leave analog behind and enter the digital realm. It was clear to Troy Payne, production manager at C3 Church, there was no better guide than Morris Integration, headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, to make this happen seamlessly and within budget. “C3’s aging

Hermosa Church of Christ in Artesia, New Mexico, was looking for architects that would be able to communicate the church’s vision to the congregation and the community. Busting at the seams with a multi-generational congregation, the current location and facilities were no longer able to meet the ministry needs of the church. Halo Architects went

When Grace Bible Church in La Vernia, Texas, planned a complex renovation that took two years to complete, Jack Saenz, installation manager of BP Lighting, Sound and Video (BP), was brought in by Rock River Media to design a sound system that would fit within their budget but exceed their expectations. Saenz suggested a rig

Eagan, Minnesota Easter Lutheran Church in Eagan, Minnesota, recently worked with Langer Construction to remodel both of their locations. Easter by the Lake At “The Lake,” a 2,500-square-foot Lakeside Commons meeting room, large teen room, and offices were added, while remodeling the greeting desk for full-time staff. The project also included a new licensed commercial

Theaters of one kind or another have long played a role in the growth of Christ Community Church in St. Charles, Illinois. Just before Christmas 1984, the suburban Chicago church, which was founded by four couples, held its first service in a rented movie theater. Christ Community has since grown into a thriving four-campus house

Naperville, Illinois Since 1997, Community Christian Church has relentlessly pursued its mission of helping people find their way back to God. They do this by focusing on REACHING people who are currently far from God, RESTORING this world back to God’s dream, and REPRODUCING this mission in the lives of others. Over time though, it

  This article originally appeared in the October 2012 issue. By Jennifer Walker-Journey Fanning Howey is an architecture, engineering, and design firm with office locations across the country. The firm’s work spans the nation and it often partners with local design firms to bring its unique services to communities large and small, www.fhai.com. To say

The preferences and behaviors of churchgoers are constantly changing. Vanco Payment Solutions’ 2017 Churchgoers Giving Study proved that when it was released late last year. Vanco places a high value on research to understand churches’ eGiving needs, and how they are succeeding with eGiving tools, www.vancopayments.com. In addition to the Churchgoers Giving Study, Vanco regularly

As their congregational family grew, Holy Infant Parish in Manchester, Pennsylvania, found itself on the easternmost portion of its parish boundary. While their existing two-story church and education building had served their congregational needs well, the parish was faced with aging buildings that were not fully accessible and geographically limited their ability to serve their

By Emily Matchey Cross Lutheran Church of Roberts, Wisconsin, held a dedication service on Sunday, December 17, 2017, for a renovation and new addition to their facility. This celebration was fantastic and meaningful for many, particularly for architect Tim Peterson of Peterson Design Studio and Bill Derrick of Derrick Building Solutions. Cross Lutheran worked with

St. Peter the Apostle Church in Louisville, Kentucky, is a new congregation formed by the merger of five southwest Jefferson County parishes—St. Clement, St. Polycarp, Our Lady of Consolation, Our Lady Help of Christians, and St. Timothy. JRA Architects was selected to provide master planning and design services for the new 1,200-seat church, religious education

By Gino Beltran Nearly 100 years ago, churches were rarely just a Sunday house of worship – they were known for building hospitals, schools, universities, community centers and more that served their surrounding neighborhoods. At Visioneering, we’ve been honored to partner with many churches over the years who desire to bring some of that history

Founded in 1837, Immanuel Presbyterian Church is the oldest congregation in the city of Milwaukee. The present church was constructed in 1873 and features Gothic style architecture. In 1958, the congregation expanded its footprint by constructing a detached two-story building, which for many years served as an education space for its youth. This separate structure,

Bridgetown Church of Christ in Cincinnati, Ohio, had several design issues and ministry needs. They needed to update their exterior and interior for a better overall first impression. As you walked into the church, the lobby was cramped, dark, and had a low ceiling. The flow of the building was very poor. Upstairs, the church

As part of fulfilling their calling as a church, The Orchard launched four new sites between 2010—2017 from the original Arlington Heights, Illinois, campus. To thrive in this next chapter of their story, the church’s leadership recognized that it needed the Arlington Heights campus to be a vibrant, growing, sending campus—the center of an expanding

Decatur, Illinois When Aspen Group began to partner with First Christian Church Decatur to address their facility needs, it became clear that limited sanctuary seating had begun to impede the church’s ability to comfortably accommodate new attendees. Additionally, the church’s youth and children’s space lacked the kind of functionality and design that creates a safe,

Appleton, Wisconsin Churches often have preconceptions about what their space needs, perhaps without understanding the impact space can have on the experience and performance of the environment. Architects, particularly those who are experienced working with faith organizations, can be a tremendous partner for the future positioning of the church, not just by the end result

South Euclid United Church of Christ began in 1845 in Cleveland, Ohio, with the original stone church being built in 1867. Tragically, lightning struck the church in 2010 and burned to the ground, leaving only a massive carved lintel and bell remaining. In 2012, the church bought a Catholic church and school campus that was

Village Christian Church Minooka, Illinois This 20,000-square-foot facility was designed to be a warm, inviting and multi-purpose space. The exterior features brick, cement board siding and trim, textured insulated metal wall panel, metal trims, stone, and a large volume of glass. There is a large, back-lit, rough sawn cedar cross adjacent to the entrance. A

Fuqua Construction Inc., Inman, Kansas, was recently awarded the 2016 NACDB Honor Award for Projects Less Than $1,000,000 for a church project in Meade, Kansas. Fuqua Construction Inc. is a construction company specializing in church construction. When Max Fuqua began his business in 1979, the scope of the work was residential and commercial. In 1984,