By Ken Warren

When Green Acres Baptist Church of Tyler, TX, celebrated the 2010 July 4th holiday, the church was celebrating more than our national Independence Day; it was celebrating the conclusion of five continuous years of construction.

The $40 million process began with the addition of a Missions Outreach Center away from the church’s main campus. Main campus additions then followed with the expansion of ground level parking, the creation of a 10,000-square-foot maintenance facility, a 100,000-square-foot educational/administrative building known as The Lighthouse, and, finally, the completion of the CrossWalk Conference Center, an 86,000-square-foot multipurpose facility with adjacent two-level parking deck.

The conclusion of the process brings the combined building square footage on the Green Acres 32-acre main campus to about 539,000. However, the completion of the CrossWalk Conference Center brings with it a whole new way to do ministry.

Bigger and better
If you’ve been around Southern Baptist circles very long, you may be familiar with the term  fellowship hall, which is typically a facility designed for informal gatherings, meetings and meals. Our new CrossWalk Conference Center fills all of those roles; however, it does so on such a scale that it is affectionately referred to by Green Acres Pastor David Dykes as “a fellowship hall on steroids.”

The 85,785-square-foot facility centers around a 23,000-square-foot main room, CrossWalk Central, with the capacity for theater-style seating for 2,100, and seated dining for 1,400. A commercial kitchen and food service ministry is an integral part of the facility. A full stage with high definition video and digital audio systems provides the resources for live or recorded programming of just about any type.

The main room is equipped with motorized moving partitions and is divisible into three smaller sections for events of 350, 700 and 1,000 participants respectively. The lower garden level offers additional rooms for groups ranging in size from 25 to 150.

The 2010 July 4th Freedom Celebration demonstrated the flexibility and capabilities of the Conference Center when combined with the other resources both on campus and in the community. Over the four-day holiday weekend, the facilities hosted a Women’s Banquet, Family Fun Day and Car Show, Football Skills Clinic, Men’s Banquet, four presentations of the church’s annual “I Love America” musical celebration, an additional Sunday evening concert, and a reception honoring Viet Nam era veterans.

With the variety of opportunities and the flexibility of the church’s new facilities, an estimated total of 17,000 people were involved in the weekend of Freedom Celebration.

Change in services
Since the Freedom Celebration, the CrossWalk Conference Center has become the home to two Sunday morning CrossWalk worship services which occur simultaneously with two Celebration Worship services in the worship center. The music and flow of worship is distinct to the two types of services, but the message is the same. Pastor Dykes’ sermons in the Worship Center are broadcast live to the  Conference Center where he appears “bigger than life” through the high definition video system.

Since the inception of the new Sunday morning schedule, the church’s average worship attendance has increased by nearly 1,000, and Sunday morning bible study, the church’s Sunday morning small groups ministry, has seen its highest attendance in the 55-year history of the church.

With the addition of the Conference Center and its video capabilities, the effective combined worship capacity is now sufficient to meet the needs of Green Acres well into the foreseeable future.

In addition, nonprofit groups from all over the East Texas community are discovering the unique resource that the Conference Center brings to the area, and are working with the church to incorporate the facilities into their plans for the coming year.

Leaning on Isaiah
The concept of the new facilities, and the theme for the capital fund raising emphasis, was based on the passage from the book of Isaiah, “Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes, for you will spread out to the right and to the left … I will make you the joy of all generations.”

As Pastor Dykes was communicating the vision through that text, the design of the project was being orchestrated by Fitzpatrick Architects, and implemented by the builder, Denson Construction, both of Tyler. The resulting footprint of the facilities, with the Lighthouse joining the east side of the 10-year-old worship center, and the CrossWalk Conference Center joining on the west, became a literal representation of the challenge of the scripture selection to “spread out to the right and to the left,” and combined the adjacent buildings into a seamless complex of “mobility friendly” facilities.

Ken Warren is senior associate pastor of Green Acres Baptist Church, Tyler, TX.  www.gabc.org

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Building against conventional wisdom

After an exhaustive selection process involving potential architects and builders from across the Southwest, and in spite of conventional wisdom that often dictates to the contrary, both the selected architect and builder are not only located in Tyler, but are members of Green Acres church.

A member of the church’s building committee observed, “It didn’t take long to see that Fitzpatrick and Denson were simply the best companies for the job.” When asked about that fact, and the popular adage that cautions professionals from working for their home church, architect Steve Fitzpatrick observed, “It’s common for architects to say, ‘Don’t ever work for your own church,’ but I have never felt that way at all. It’s my responsibility to do a great job and make it the best it can be.”

Both the church’s trust and the architect’s and builder’s determination proved to be justified as Pastor Dykes summarized, “In my nearly 40 years of ministry, I have never been involved in such a positive, God-honoring building process as this, and the resulting facilities and their impact on our ministry and on our community are testimony to the wisdom of the choices that were made.”   —KW

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Keeping it all working together

During an average week, there are typically 200 or more scheduled activities on the Green Acres Baptist Church main campus, in addition to the weekly Sunday morning worship and small groups opportunities. It takes a dedicated person, and a fairly bullet-proof system, to keep all of those activities and the associated facilities functioning smoothly.

For Green Acres, that person is Scheduling Coordinator Debbie Fisher, and that system is the EventU online scheduling system offered by www.serviceu.com.

In addition to the ongoing event and facilities requests from the church’s 20 primary ministry areas, each year Fisher also coordinates approximately 200 requests from non-profit and community groups to whom Green Acres makes their facilities available on a cost-recovery fee basis.

The fees are determined by the size of the facility involved and includes basic furnishings. Supplementary services, such as food service and audio-visual support, are available at an additional cost.

Over the past year, the church has also orchestrated a number of special one-time events, including a “Hope for 100” Orphan Care emphasis featuring actor Jim Caviezel; a multi-day July 4th Freedom Celebration, with appearances by comedian Chonda Pierce, football players ColtMcCoy and Luke McCown, and American Idol singer, Mandisa; the Green Acres Men’s Breakfast of Champions, featuring Judge Ken Starr, president of Baylor University; and a four-day Missions Conference in November featuring 24 missionary families and speakers from around the world.

The planning and logistics for each of these events are in the hands of the sponsoring ministries of the church, and the support for the events is provided by the Green Acres Facilities, Food Service and Broadcast Ministries. The critical link in bringing all of these events and services together is the scheduling coordinator.   —KW

By Bryan Miles

The approach to construction called the “big box” — purchasing and renovating an existing building to meet a church’s expansion plans — was a passing thought five years ago that now 
is a highly viable option, with more boxes available than ever.

Many retailers of national and global scale are shedding properties nationwide, and in most cases, because of current economic conditions, are highly cost-effective. Cogun is seeing a dramatic increase in its services that are more renovation-oriented, and we expect this trend will continue until inventory levels of commercial space evens out.

In anticipation of this growing field, last year we held what we called a “Deep-Dive” event where prospective church clients could come for three hours and ask questions, and probe more deeply into options and alternatives beyond the traditional new building opportunities. We shared ideas to consider that were tied to going after and looking for former retail or commercial spaces.

Pitfalls to avoid

Just as important, we also addressed the common pitfalls we see when a church works to tackle this effort. The churches involved focused on non-denominational, community churches, or churches that were really centered on finding lost people for Jesus as opposed to catering to “insiders.”

One of the churches at last year’s Big Box Deep Dive was Lifepoint Church at Fredericksburg, VA, which is working with Cogun on the design and planning of a new facility for its growing ministry. In just five years, Lifepoint has grown from around 50 people to now around 1,000 people who attend two weekly worship services. Since Lifepoint was established in 2005, the church has been meeting in temporary facilities and currently meets in Riverbend High School in Fredericksburg. In 2008, church leaders realized they needed to address their growth as a church and secure their own “home.”

With many big box buildings sitting vacant and for sale at reduced prices, greater square footage, and no expense of developing raw land, the church decided this was their best option. Together we will work on site selection, building analysis, design coordination, and project funding which will all lead to helping the church build its new ministry space.

“Working with Lifepoint has been a fulfilling experience and we have not even built anything for the church yet,” says Matt Robertson, project consultant for Cogun. “We recently had the opportunity to spend several days on site with the church to better understand its DNA. The church has obviously seen exponential growth which could be a potential threat for a young organization like Lifepoint. Yet the leadership is well grounded, their pastors serve with humility, and the church truly understands who they are and why they exist; to reach people who are far from God and help them discover His design for their lives.”

Transform lives

The new facility will have worship space for 900, and will include space to house the children, middle school and high school ministries. For a church already impacting its community, building a larger and more permanent home will continue to help Lifepoint transform lives.

Lifepoint is still looking at what kind of big box facility will work for them. But spaces are often available from retailers and developers, like the 120,000-square-foot Wal-Mart buildings to the 35,000-square-foot former Circuit City buildings to former auto sales dealerships to former movie theaters to bowling alleys.

There is an abundance of possible opportunities for the American church in today’s market, and the key is finding the right one that matches a church’s DNA and growth strategy.

Matt Robertson says that there is more than worship space at stake. “We are seeing worship space of anywhere from 900 to 1,200 seats, where the church knows from day one they will be in multiple services. But they are also thinking about appropriately sized kid spaces, administration, foyer and hub space, and more, all created to match the brand of the church and tell the stories of life change that is happening in the congregation.

Community concerns

There is some push back from communities on churches in commercially-zoned areas because it will mean no tax revenue for that local government, but that can be overcome. Besides governmental hurdles, there are signage, parking and sound issues to address that often fall outside the normal scope of a building permit application and acquisition process.

And to be sure, no architect ever designed a Wal-Mart space with a second use in mind, so HVAC systems, parking, side-wall heights and the like need to be seriously considered by qualified professionals before an in depth offer is made to purchase the building.

Buying a building is as much art and it is science, and dollars spent on due diligence is a very wise move. The story of redeeming a building can parallel the life restored by a personal relationship and faith placed in Jesus. Churches can leverage this unique story when they go the route of the big box renovation.

Bryan Miles is vice president of consulting, Cogun Inc., 
North Lima, OH.  www.cogun.com

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What church chooses ‘big box’ solution?

A church that is attracted to the “big box” solution is a church that sees ownership differently and wants to remain agile long-term with its growth strategy. These churches don’t want to build and develop one large asset in one part of town. They want multi-site, in most cases, and are staff-led and elder-guided. These churches are serious about creating programming that is relevant for all age-group ministries, and are highly passionate about finding lost people for Jesus as their predominant focus.   —BM

Other box projects done by Cogun Inc.

• Elevation Church, Charlotte, NC
• Rock Bridge Community Church, Dalton, GA
• Athens Church, Athens, GA
• Living Word Christian Center, Tuskegee, AL

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‘Big box’ possibilities

• Grade schools
• Middle schools
• High schools
• Movie theaters
• Large restaurants
• Shopping malls
• Big box stores
• Corporate offices
• Manufacturing plants
• Car dealerships

Source: Brian Kluth [ www.MAXIMUMgenerosity.org ]

By Richard A. Honeycutt

Churches often complain about the noisiness of their existing multipurpose spaces. While optimizing the acoustics of a single space for multiple functions poses a challenge, careful planning in the design phase or during a renovation can enhance the room’s acoustics.

Common uses for  multipurpose rooms include the following:

• Fellowship meals
• Meetings, with or without featured speakers
• Worship with hymn singing
• Dramatic and/or musical performances
• Recreation

While no single set of acoustical conditions is ideal for all functions, we can control certain ones. An important consideration for sound control is background noise from outside, adjacent rooms, the HVAC system, or from the occupants. These extra sounds can make the room uncomfortable.

Another consideration is reverberation time (RT): The time required for a sound to decay to inaudibility. A long RT causes sound to linger, contributing to overall noise and the harder it is to be understood while talking.

Speech intelligibility

Both background noise and RT affect speech intelligibility. During fellowship meals people prefer privacy between different table conversations, which technically is low intelligibility. During large meetings, everybody wants to understand the facilitator, which requires high intelligibility.

Related to speech intelligibility is acoustical strength, or room gain, defined as how much louder a sound is within the room than that same sound would be outdoors.

Echoes are another acoustical challenge. Echoes are related but not identical to reverberant sound, or sound reflected repeatedly, producing a continuous jumble of sustained noise. Echoes of individual words are recognizable as words; whereas, reverberation is not recognizable as the individual sounds.

Despite the common misconception that acousticians
 do nothing but recommend absorptive wall panels, a skilled practitioner will use several strategies to meet the acoustical, aesthetic, and budgetary goals of the church.

Noise is most easily controlled at the design stage. A common source of excess noise is HVAC systems. If these are designed appropriately, choice of equipment and layout can provide noise control. Improving HVAC noise levels after a room is built will entail more limited choices and higher costs. The best solution for a given room depends upon the room and system design.

Noise from external sources is also best controlled at the design stage, by proper room layout and optimum wall, ceiling, window and door design.

Reverberation time

Reverberation time depends upon the volume of a room and the acoustical absorption of its surfaces. Ideal RT varies from about a half second for a meeting or  lecture to about two seconds for traditional worship. The combination of traditional worship and concert use with fellowship meals and lectures create conflicting requirements for RT. Contemporary or Gospel worship styles work well with RT similar to the target values for lectures, meetings, and eating functions. There are a few good electro-acoustical solutions to provide variable RT in a room but the cost may be prohibitive.

For both amplified and unamplified speech the background noise level, reverberation, and sound level of the desired speech control the intelligibility. For unamplified speech, reflective surfaces in the room near the person speaking help to support the speech sound level, and thus improve intelligibility. This is why a reflective ceiling helps people to understand what is said in large meetings and dramatic presentations. A reflective shell above the stage area is helpful for unamplified speech and vocal or instrumental music. If reverberation control is achieved by placing absorptive materials on the upper walls, a reflective ceiling may be used, achieving good conditions for unamplified speech without excessive reverberation.

For amplified speech, a well-designed sound system is necessary. Normally, this will consist of a single speaker system mounted high and in front of the audience, although some rooms need one or two line array speakers that spread the sound horizontally.

The preferred acoustical strength ranges from low for a dining function to high for open meetings. One solution is designing the room to have low strength for peaceful dining, then adding a good sound system with a wireless handheld microphone for open meetings.

The importance of unamplified sound

For some performance and worship styles, natural unamplified sound is important. Even when amplification is used, it is not fool proof: Johnny may forget to turn on his wireless mic during the Christmas pageant, or Sally’s wireless mic may fail just before her only line. In these cases, good strength is needed to help t hem project sound acoustically. Good strength is also needed for hymn singing. Most people feel uncomfortable if they hear only themselves singing. A reflective ceiling makes others’ singing audible. Where a reflective ceiling cannot be used, a good sound-system designer can lift the choir in the sound system so that the congregation is encouraged by the choral sound.

Echoes cause problems mainly when they occur over 1/20 second after the original sound, and when the echo is as loud as the original sound. In a 120’x 80’ x 36’ multipurpose room, a sound from the stage requires about 106 milliseconds to travel to the back wall, then about 100 milliseconds  to return to the ears of a person seated on the front row. This is a delay of about 1/5 of a second, well over the 1/20-second limit. Unless the back wall is covered with acoustically absorptive material, or acoustical diffusion, which breaks up echoes by scattering the reflected sound, the echo can be annoying and/or distracting.

If you are planning a multipurpose room, get a competent acoustical consultant involved at the schematic design stage. Avoiding problems is much less expensive than correcting them later. You can negotiate with your architect whether the consultant’s fee will be included in the architect’s charges or will be billed directly to the building owner.

If you have problems with an existing room, most consultants can offer a proposal tailored to the scope and difficulty of the work. The consultant does not “fix” the acoustics. They analyze the acoustics of the room and makes appropriate recommendations. A general contractor usually must be engaged to make any changes in the room. If HVAC noise is a problem, an HVAC contractor may be needed. Once a consultant provides estimates of the costs for each noise-control modification, you can decide for which steps you will request bids from contractors.

Richard A. Honeycutt is principal consultant, EDC Sound Services, Lexington, NC. www.edcsound.com

By Tom Greenwood

Reversing decades of trends, churches are reclaiming cities around the world and rethinking buildings in the process. From the 1970s through the 90s, the suburbs were the hotbed for church growth and both new church plants and older urban congregations hurried to claim large tracts of property on the leading fringes of new development to “escape” the inner cities. But churches are turning back to the cities, back to the downtowns and urban neighborhoods with missional zeal.

“For us — we made the decision to remain in the center of our city,” says Dennis Wiles, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Arlington, TX. “We are across the street from City Hall and sandwiched in between it and a thriving university. Our decision to remain in this setting is connected to our sense of heritage and stewardship for this congregation, founded in 1871.”

Inner city planting

Other churches are purposely planting in the inner cities. Fellowship Church, which first sprang up in the suburbs of DFW, has created downtown campuses in both Dallas and Fort Worth as a strategic plan to reach the wave of new urbanites moving back into those cities. In both places, Fellowship Church took existing office/warehouse buildings and created a place for thousands of city dwellers to connect with Christ.

Growing and building a church in an urban area brings a whole new set of challenges and opportunities. The Beck Group, a national architectural and construction firm, has encountered these challenges in a variety of situations, from those like Fellowship Church to historic congregations who are reimagining their aging campuses such as First Baptist Dallas.

Some of the best design lessons for the new urban church, interestingly, have come from designing churches in South Korea. In cities like Seoul, where the population density is four times greater than New York City, churches have learned to build and thrive in very confined spaces.

“Due to less land and municipal requirements for higher density restrictions on development, churches in Korea seem to be better at doing more with less” says Michael Kaiser, a lead designer with Beck. One amazing example is SaRang Church in Seoul, where we are designing a new campus for 30,000 persons on 1.7 acres, or roughly one city block. These are some of the bigger discoveries in planning buildings for the urban church.

Conventional church planning requires one acre of land for every 150-200 persons, due to parking requirements and zoning ordinances in most communities. In contrast, zoning in most business districts or dense urban areas requires comparatively little on-site parking. For churches’ parking needs, urban areas often have parking garages or commercial lots virtually unused on weekends or evenings. Public transportation can also be plentiful in urban locales, and the renewed interest in downtown housing make neighborhoods easily walkable.

Fellowship Church’s location in downtown Dallas provides space for 1,500 persons per worship hour with only two acres of land. This is possible because of several negotiated agreements for shared parking and an efficient three-story, 43,000-square-foot building.

The flow of the building

In function and appearance, the typical church building model is turned “on its head” or vertically in many urban locations. The experience of people using the buildings, from adults to children, is much different as they must flow up and down between multiple floor levels. This need for large amounts of vertical circulation is more akin to a sports area or civic center, where ample stairs, elevators and even escalators may be needed. Providing way-finding or visual queues in the buildings helps orient people as to where and how to move, which can be a challenge in a multistory campus.

Organizationally, worship rooms may actually go on upper floors, with children’s education spaces below. Street-level floors are valuable for more public-oriented spaces such as bookstores, cafés or gathering areas. Finding the right floor level and mix of spaces is unique in each case and can have a huge impact on the overall functionality of the campus.

To reach the city, one has to engage the city. Older church architecture in cities can tend to be heavy and fortress-like, but urban churches today want to communicate welcome and transparency. That means creating plazas, glass buildings, fountains and other spaces that invite the public.

By leveraging their facilities, churches can help fill a need that most public-sector urban revitalization plans can’t provide. In a time where so many cities are trying to revitalize their older downtowns as livable, sustainable communities, churches can add another layer (albeit a spiritual one), to this idea of mixed-use development.

While churches today struggle to bring “community” to the church, urban churches can bring the church to the community. First Baptist Church of Arlington has seen the tangible benefits of a community building approach in their ministry. The church was a forerunner in developing urban ministries to such as Mission Arlington, a child development center, community recreation classes and counseling services, which use their facilities on weekdays.

Active members

“Staff members in our church are actively involved as civic leaders serving on boards and committees within our downtown community. We have a positive relationship with our city, chamber of commerce, and UTA (University of Texas at Arlington)” says Terry Bertrand, First Baptist Arlington’s business administrator. The church has also been invited as a key contributor to new master plans developed by the City of Arlington and UTA (adjacent to the church’s property).

When the church undertook its own master planning and expansion plans, its community involvement opened opportunities for several key property exchanges and shared use agreements with the city and university. Additional benefits gained include weekend access to a 1,000-car parking garage (at no cost), the ability to close streets and connect major portions of the church’s property, and a new $4 million city park and outdoor concert pavilion literally on the church’s front door step.

Perhaps the idea of the urban church is not something new, but rather rediscovering something essential to our Christian mission. Wiles sees it this way: “When you drive through Arlington’s downtown, you see the centers of government and civic life, you see the banks and businesses that represent the center of commerce for our community, and you see the steeple and buildings of the First Baptist Church. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is just as relevant for this community in the 21st century as it was for Rome, Corinth and Antioch in the 1st century.”

Tom Greenwood is a principal and leader in the Church Services group at Beck Group, Dallas, TX. 
 www.beckgroup.com

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Planning: when ‘type A’ churchmen do a ‘fix’

Timothy L. Cool has assisted many churches with their facilities planning as president of Cool Solutions Group in Charlotte, NC., where he is a member of megachurch Elevation Church, and was part of the startup of Next Level Church in the same city. He has put his years of experience into a book, Successful Masterplanning: More than Pretty Pictures (iUniverse Inc., 2010). He responded to a few questions from Church Executive.

How does planning differ from master planning?

When I refer to master planning we are taking it one step further and adding in a futuristic component. Master planning is not unique to just property and facilities, but to other endeavors such as growing a company, a congregation and the like. In this instance, we are looking at the long-term development of real property based on our current understanding of the “facts” and vision that God has given us.

Where do values and vision come into master planning?

Vision is the heart beat of any master planning process. If there is no vision, then why plan; just keep on doing what you’re doing. If your ministry has a vision that is supported by values, an understanding of your unique DNA and target market, then you have the foundation from which to develop a master plan for your church — not the church down the street or across the country. Each ministry, and thus master plan, is as unique as our physical DNA and needs to be addressed as such.

What are common mistakes that churches make in planning for their futures, whether for construction and facilities, or for programming and mission?

The most common issues we have seen is they immediately want to “fix” the problem. The majority of church leaders are Type A males with a propensity to fixing things. So that carries over to their leadership at the church and during discussion about facilities.

We are out of kids’ space — build a new wing. Well, what if there are other issues associated with being out of kids’ space? Is this an indicator that you are attracting more young families? Could the socio-economic make-up of the church be shifting? Are you currently using the entire campus to its highest and best use? Is there a “programming” strategy incorporated that would take the pressure off the physical space?  Stop; take the time to ask the right questions.

What are the common issues churches have for managing growth and organization challenges?

If you can understand your DNA and your target market, then your space can be planned accordingly. I have helped my church in the last two building projects. We know that we do not want a venue larger that about 900 seats with just enough ancillary space to accommodate the children’s program that supports worship.

We plan to be multi-site – no doubt about that – it is our unique calling for this region. Knowing this early in the master planning process helped us to design the structures to fit us, our vision and our ministry. We did not need to design a 5,000 seat worship center or have a plethora of adult education classrooms. You need to define who you are, and let that define your physical plant.

You write that the master planning process is “the foundation of any expansion program.” Can you explain further?

Have you ever been to a church campus and wonder why the most austere structure is in the most prominent position of the campus? I have seen this hundreds of time and it is general because they built their first phase in the easiest (or least expensive) place to start with without much thought of the future. That is a prime example of the physical ramification of not having a master plan.  www.CoolSolutionsGroup.com

Long-term facility planning causes soaring church membership.

By Thomas K. Smith

Established in 1964, Holy Spirit Catholic Church, Atlanta, GA, consisted of 250 families that gathered to worship in the cafeteria of a local high school in what was once suburban Atlanta. Within a few years, property was purchased and a temporary worship facility was built.

During the next 20 years, the parish added buildings on an as-needed basis; first adding a rectory, followed by the construction of a permanent church and an education building.

Due to the population growth in the city of Atlanta, the church membership had grown to 550 families while the suburban location of the church had transformed into an affluent city neighborhood. The reactive approach to growth taken by the parish leadership had created a disparate collection of buildings that the parish had outgrown soon after they had been completed.

Grand vision

In 1987, a new pastor with a grand vision for the future was assigned to lead the parish family. A long range planning study was completed in 1988 and fund raising soon followed. CDH Partners, a design firm specializing in the planning and design of religious projects, was hired in 1991 to provide a master plan for the church campus. At the time, the campus consisted of a 300-seat church with small chapel and classrooms, a rectory and a multipurpose building used primarily for religious education.

Phase I of the plan called for the design and construction of a new 800-seat church and the renovation/transformation of the former church into a parish hall. This new building project marked the beginning of an entire campus renovation that lasted 18 years and transformed the 33-acre site into a Romanesque Revival campus that contained facilities for the church as well as a new private K-12 school. This renovation also sparked a spiritual renovation that witnessed the church membership soar to more than 2,000 families.

Following the construction of the new church (1995), the parish added a new rectory (1998), an administrative building (2001), and 14 acres and two large education buildings (2004) for the use of the private school.

The final phase

The final phase of the master plan began in 2006 and consisted of replacing the former church building with a new building that would house similar functions to its predecessor, but in a more aesthetic container.

The new building houses a 180-seat chapel, a parish hall that seats 375 people, seven classroom/meeting rooms, and additional ancillary spaces to support the needs of the parish. The building attaches to the church with a two-story open breezeway that links the religious components of the two buildings.

The exterior of the new building was designed to complement and blend with the architecture of the church. The masonry was matched and the details mimicked in order to create a seamless transition between buildings. For this reason, Vermont slate was chosen for the roof.

The shape of the chapel reflects back to the octagon shaped room of the former chapel, but that is where the similarities of the two rooms end. The new chapel, which more than doubles the capacity of the former (75 seats to 180 seats), has a ceiling that soars to 40 feet in height. Large oak beams and custom lighting help minimize the scale of the room. Religious artwork from the former chapel was reused, providing the parish with a historical link to its humble beginnings.

The transformation of The Holy Spirit church campus has been a remarkable one resulting in a campus renewal that provides for many more families and making the most of their strategic location.

Thomas K. Smith is a principal of CDH Partners Inc., Marietta, GA.

[ www.cdhpartners.com ]

By Jim Rosenbaum

With church facilities under construction, you want to ensure that your money is wisely spent, while at the same time being viewed by your contractor as a cooperative business partner. Fulfilling your financial oversight responsibilities while fostering smooth working relations is a diplomatic endeavor. Maintaining this delicate balance demands accurate accounting of your contract obligations, your costs, billings and payments.

That’s where construction audit enters the picture. Since “audit” has multiple connotations, let’s define what we mean: A construction audit is a comprehensive review of the construction contract documents, plus an analysis and reconciliation of all billings and payments. If the construction contract is worded for your benefit, an audit also verifies actual costs, which is not a trivial matter.

The contract review is essential to understand the appropriate finance- related provisions and determine what is contractually stipulated, allowable and prohibited. In other words, the contract sets forth the rules for a project. The analysis and reconciliation of billing/ payment data is essential to verify that:

1. Costs and billings are allowable and permissible.

2. Billings are contractually compliant, numerically accurate, and thus payable.

3. Payments are accurate and timely (not paid unnecessarily early).

Evaluate billing accuracy

It’s important to understand the construction billing/payment context in deciding how to evaluate contractor billing accuracy (we use “contractor” to refer to a General Contractor, Construction Manager, or Subcontractor, as appropriate). At White Mesa we do not attempt to determine contractors’ intent; we merely perform the needed review and analysis. But we do gain insights into practices and possible motivations.

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Rarely do we see what appear to be intentional mistakes or deception. Sometimes it’s unclear if an error was a “convenient” mistake or an honest one. However, in most situations, what we discover appear to be unintentional oversights or accidents, apparently caused by a contractor’s overloaded office staff working simultaneously on several projects.

The result is billing discrepancies that translate into payment issues. In fact, since there have been billing/payment irregularities in every project we’ve audited, we are convinced 100 percent of all construction projects contain cost/billing/payment errors. Typical audit findings (derived from these errors) average 1 to 3 percent of the construction cost. In some situations they have exceeded 3 percent, and in exceptional circumstances even more.

Findings originate from virtually every aspect of costs and billings, from the top to the bottom of the billing food chain. They all equate to significant dollar savings that project owners would prefer to use for other needs.

Every project needs review

From this perspective it is apparent every project needs an in-depth, complete study of all the billing and payment details. The question then becomes how to identify and resolve billing and payment mistakes in the most cost-effective manner. There are several important matters to keep in mind:

• Every project has identifiable cost/billing/payment mistakes.
• An audit provides the detailed review and analysis needed to establish proper financial oversight.
• With few exceptions, your volunteer or full-time staff will not have the expertise or time to conduct the kind of extensive review needed.
• Your architect, although all their fees are paid by you, will attempt to represent the interests of both you and the contractor simultaneously. As a general rule they also do    not attempt the degree of detail and breadth of scope covered in a construction audit.

• If you employ a third-party project manager to oversee the contractor’s administration of the project they will not have the available resources to conduct an audit.

Obviously, the contractor will not be viewed as an appropriate party to audit its own work. This means that literally no one involved in your project has the time and expertise to perform the needed review, analysis and reconciliations.

The most workable, cost-effective option is to engage a third-party provider to conduct a construction audit on your behalf. There are significant advantages to this approach that make it a logical, straightforward decision:

1. You retain highly experienced individuals focused solely on the cost/billing/payment issues and dedicated exclusively to your interests in the project.

2. The findings, even at the 1 percent level, exceed the fees for an audit, so this service more than pays for itself. (At White Mesa, findings are usually several times higher than our fees, making for a benefit/cost ratio of 3:1 to 5:1).

3. The engagement is temporary, for the duration of the project. The additional resources are there only for as long as needed.

As you contemplate the need for an audit, here are some additional pointers to help make the financial dimension of your project more trouble-free:

• Use an attorney (preferably one with successful experience in construction law) to draw up the contracts.
• Use contract language requiring the contractor to document all costs.
• Ask for what you want in writing.
• Clarify beforehand any vague areas concerning price and cost.
• Insist on withholding retainage on all contractors until you and the architect are satisfied.

At the end of your construction project, one of the keystones to calling it a success is complete due diligence. Undertaking a thorough billing and payment verification will reap the rewards of increased trust and peace of mind for years to come. A construction audit is an excellent, virtually indispensable tool for making that happen.

Jim Rosenbaum is president of White Mesa Inc., Plano, TX, providing nationwide construction audit services for commercial construction projects of all types. [ www.whitemesa.biz ]

Building costs decline as much as 23 percent over three years ago, while major gifts are ‘back in play.’

Is this the time for a church to be building? Jobs are being lost and families are rethinking their pledges to their church’s budget. Even as many are having difficulty with their own home mortgage much less be financing their church’s new home, one person in the building trades says the present time is “an incredible opportunity for the faith-based building sector.”

David Hatton of Churchworx sees it from the point of view of a dedicated churchman and one who’s worked many years in the building trades, focusing on church construction.

“Building a church project in these ‘uncertain’ economic times is both a very smart use of God’s money,” he says, but — and here’s the clinker  — “requires an extraordinary vision, faith and leadership from the church’s pastor, staff and members.”

Value for the dollar

Hatton, who is based in Texas, says that projects in Dallas and Houston are experiencing a “total project delivered” cost decline of 19 to 23 percent today against 2007. “That translates into the fact that for every dollar spent, a church will realize $1.30 worth of total project in-place value,” he says.

That’s the dollar number that First Baptist Church of Dallas is using as they begin a capital campaign this spring and look to breaking ground in July on a $130 million project that is the largest, by far, church project in this country if not the world.

The $6 million overall project cost for Crossroads United Methodist Church in Oakdale, PA, near Pittsburgh, is small by comparison, but no less challenging for the congregation in these times. Senior Pastor Steve Cordell says that “obviously, the economic climate was on everyone’s mind. We knew that people’s assets had been deeply impacted by the falling stock market and uncertainty over jobs.”

The church of 1,100 has five live services and two video venues and the facility has reached capacity. But they have a vision of having 10 campuses “and the congregational excitement about our opportunities in Mozambique was growing,” Cordell says.

He admits that the $6 million cost was “rather daunting for a church with a $1.25 million general budget.” Working with Generis campaign experts, they took their project in two phases, and the first phase was a huge success. “We surpassed our goal of $750,000 over one year by receiving pledges of $1.2 million, with 90 percent of the church participating,” Cordell says.

Several things made the difference for this church’s success, says Cordell: obvious facility need, communication of the need over a year, strong buy-in to the overall vision, a momentum and unity in the congregation — and God’s grace.

Brad Leeper of Generis says that the phasing in of plans makes sense for some churches. “Because most churches will be unable to secure lending for a larger project in the short-term, some of these churches are using a smaller giving season in a campaign to tackle a portion of the project to prepare for the larger project hopefully in the next year.”

Taking first step

Crossroads, for example, decided on the two-stage Mission Expansion Project that allowed them to make progress toward their goal without incurring any debt — in fact, reducing the debt. They bought the property, started a new campus, covered soft cost preparatory work, furthered their work in Mozambique, and did some debt retirement.

Not moving ahead on the project, and not phasing in the work, has another impact, says Brad Leeper. “The other option is to remain silent before the church and that silence will get a church no further down the road with their mission.”

Lifepoint Church in Fredericksburg, VA is just five years old with 650 people, including children, attending in school facilities, where the school district is raising their rental rates a flat 10 percent for every 12 months they occupy the school, meaning that before long the church has to move.

Executive Pastor Jeremy Pickwell says “we knew what God wanted to do in the Fredericksburg area, and we simply used deductive reasoning to reach a timeline.” But, he notes, “The timeline just happened to fall in the middle of one of the worst recessions on record.”

Still, Pickwell says they saw the “opportunity cost.” Interest rates were historically low, “and with input from Cogun and Bank of the West, we quickly realized that commercial real estate loans are beginning to reset and vacant ‘big box’ buildings are becoming more prevalent and affordable.”

No doubt on timing

In the end, he says, when the decision was made there was zero doubt about the timing. “Our goal was $1.5 million,” he says. “God’s economy allowed us to see commitments of more than $2.4 million. Obey what God says, he is in control.” Says Generis’ Brad Leeper, “Rather than purchasing land, paying it off, then building — a five-year course perhaps — they are purchasing empty retail space at a discounted rate and then raising funds for the renovation. They can secure greater square footage and get into the building much sooner and without the expense of the infrastructure that raw land requires.”

While Pickwell says that God is doing something special, he affirms that “there is a difference between faith and foolishness.” The church is looking now for a new space. “We needed to be in a financial position to be a real candidate to purchase a building” and have begun their Accelerate campaign, he says.

When it comes to running capital campaigns, Leeper believes that “major gifts are back in play.”

“I have seen six gifts greater than $1,000,000 and several greater than $250,000. High capacity donors, while having a very high bar for the project credibility, have an increased interest in standing in the gap in this season.

“Not all people are losing money in the recession. Some are making good money and have surplus to share. The standards for giving are more demanding and the church leadership must be very well prepared to have a series of conversations with a higher capacity donor.

“Two years ago, a pastor could have one conversation about a gift and be done. One and done. Now plan on multiple conversations with a much more detailed plan for their gift,” Leeper says, “The higher capacity donor conversations are much more complex,” he says.

On the financing side too, banks are more careful than ever, with new formulas to determine loan options. “Increased cash reserves, lower debt ratios, smaller percentages of expenses in the human resources category, and other factors are much more demanding,” Leeper says.

“I often have a church brag that they are debt free, and while debt free is good, banks look more carefully at excess cash flow. Does a church have the cash flow margin to provide debt service? This factor is much more in play than ever before,” he says.

Marianne Berlan of Bank of the West says it a little differently. Her own institution has not changed its lending criteria, nor curtailed its lending activity, she says. “We continue to evaluate loan requesters based on a church’s historical cash flow, including recently implemented or ongoing capital stewardship campaigns,” she says. BOTW has “never found it appropriate for a church to rely on growth to meet their debt service requirements.”

She notes that the institution has nearly $1.2 billion in loans outstanding and has no delinquencies.

So a good time to build? While some churches may choose to postpone building plans, Stephen McSwain, senior vice president at Cargill Associates, says, “A church that can postpone its building plans is probably not the church that should be building when the economy is in better shape. What should drive any building plan is, first, the call of God, and second, the need itself.

“A church that follows those two criteria will not only be able to build but will be able to manage any residual debt and, ultimately, pay for the new facility.”

The right question McSwain says is not should a church build, but “What is God calling us to do and is there any way we can do what God is calling us to do and avoid building?”

Ronald E. Keener

By Tom Greenwood

Inspiration for innovation can come from unexpected places. For a South Korean congregation, the spark for innovation was fueled by leading American churches’ missional architecture.

Shinkwang Church is a Presbyterian congregation of 8,000 worshipers each week, located in Iksan City. When the church had outgrown its property, a delegation from the congregation visited the U.S. to tour facilities of leading congregations. The goal was to discover how facilities could augment ministry and mission.

In late 2008, the congregation opened its new campus, designed by The Beck Group. The functions of worship, children and youth ministries are familiar, but the design solutions were anything but typical. The 500,000-square-foot facility features a 2,500-seat sanctuary, 300-seat chapel, multipurpose gym and wellness center, children and youth centers, cafeteria, bookstore, three indoor playgrounds, offices, an underground parking garage for 500 and an international-sized soccer field on top of the garage.

Going vertical

A congregation contemplating such an ambitious development would normally look for a large tract of land, perhaps in a newly developing suburb. Shinkwang had only seven acres, still one of the largest church parcels in Korea, in an already densely developed city. And while a typical suburban church might build 50,000 square feet on seven acres, the Shinkwang design provides 10 times that amount. Going vertical with a four-story structure, utilizing underground parking, and locating near mass transit stops was essential to reducing the footprint of the church.

Clarity of circulation and movement is designed to allow the campus to function vertically instead of just horizontally. Lobbies and corridors are roomy, but so are stairways. Thousands of people flow upward through massive sunlit-stairways, from underground parking and public transportation at the street level, to upper floors with ministry spaces.
Communicating relevance and authenticity to its culture was also important to Shinkwang Church. The four-story structure exhibits a powerful contemporary style with exposed concrete structure and use of composite metal panels. Yet the building is not cold to the touch.

Wood is a sacred natural element to Koreans, and it was incorporated in many forms through the building interior. Floors, furnishings, as well as special wall and ceiling treatments utilized wood. Cherry wood and granite native to the country were used to provide detail through the space, as was modern Asian styles of lighting and furnishings.

Many prayer closets

To support the daily prayer ministry of the church, so vital to many Korean Christians, 20 prayer rooms, totaling more than 20,000 square feet, were provided a prominent location. Rooms range in size from individual prayer “closets” to 200 person rooms for community prayer.

Significant investment was also made to make advanced technology a part of the everyday church life. HD video, sophisticated audio and LED theatrical lighting systems complement flexible functionality for worship and other ministries or public events.

Whether it’s innovative design to reduce carbon footprint, thinking vertical in facility function or connecting to its culture, Shinkwang Church offers a great example of innovative, transformational design. Even more importantly, churches everywhere can learn from the risk-taking attitude of the Shinwang congregation, which would not let traditional cultural ideas of ministry and church buildings limit their missional purpose.

Their risk is already being rewarded by a hugely positive response from the community, and other churches in Korea are taking notice.

“We have had so many visitors from other churches,” says Shinkwang’s senior pastor, Rev. Duck Soon Chang. “They have commented that our church has opened up a new chapter in Korean church facilities.”

Tom Greenwood, AIA, is director of Church Services at The Beck Group, a Dallas-based architecture and construction firm that serves churches throughout the world. [www.beckgroup.com]

By Doug Spuler and Ken Anderson

There’s a trend towards people moving back to denser urban areas that provides an opportunity for the church to reclaim an anchor position in the heart of the community. The repatriation of downtown cores and the development of new transit-oriented urban centers is a trend that’s expected to continue for at least the next 15 years.

Buying excess land beyond what is required for your immediate facility need can result in a win-win-win situation. You need a new facility to meet your church’s growing needs.You need the community to create a vibrant church. The community needs many of the resources the church has to offer. Why not plan ahead and give your church the flexibility to address the needs of the future and an opportunity to integrate into the fabric of the community?

Among the advantages of buying excess land and doing a mixed-use development plan is the ability to leverage the land in the future, providing a legacy and investment for future generations of the church. A mixed-use campus provides an avenue for the church to integrate into the community in ways that weekend services just don’t accomplish on their own.

Create master-plan

Resale or leasing. In the simplest scenario, your church may be able to sell or lease the excess land at a possible profit in the near-term or future. By investing in an entitlement process, which is basically a rezoning effort where land development for a specific use is legally approved by the municipality or governing entity, your church may be able to sell or lease the land at an increased rate.

For instance, purchasing land that has a low zoning density and going through the entitlement process to rezone it to a higher density will often result in the land becoming more valuable and more attractive to potential buyers and developers. An entitlement effort typically requires the skill of a land planner and architect and can range in costs from $50,000 to several hundred-thousands of dollars and take anywhere from six months to two years to complete.

Land values can increase up to two or three times the original purchase price. Depending on the acreage of the land, this could be millions of dollars to the church.

Co-developing. Another opportunity lies in the potential to be an active participant in development of the plan. In Westminster, CO, the Westminster Church of the Nazarene is doing just that. An inner-ring suburb of Denver, Westminster is a growing area. The church was beyond capacity on its existing campus and saw an opportunity in developing a new 78-acre site into a mixed-use community with itself as its “anchor tenant.” A market analysis showed a strong demand for a mix of uses including housing, retail and commercial near the church’s new location.

The site offers a potential for an eventual 1.3 million square feet of development, of which the church will occupy about 300,000 square feet. Westminster Nazarene sees this as a magnet to draw upwards of 7,500 people plus through its campus every week. RNL is working with the church to create a phased master plan as well as architectural design for the first vertical developments within the plan. This first phase includes design for one of three planned primary worship venues, a 68,000-square-foot multi-purpose facility expected to complete construction in 2011.

Situated as the community’s feature building, the facility will be complemented by two future worship venues, an 1,800-seat contemporary performing arts-style sanctuary and a 350-seat chapel. Each of the three will have a very distinct style and scale and complement the remainder of the church campus including day care, youth, recreation, administration and Christian school buildings. These facilities will be open to the community at large and be a resource to the community.

Yet the church is wise in looking beyond its immediate critical needs and understanding they are only part of the picture. The church is pursuing teaming arrangements with independent developers to co-develop the rest of the site. The ultimate vision is a partnership of collaborative uses and users resulting in a spiritual “village” linked by open green parks and pedestrian friendly streets fostering a sense of unity.

Powerful architectural statement

RNL provided a massing analysis, which helps determine facility sizes, heights and forms of future buildings, creating a dynamic and powerful architectural statement to identify the main church buildings as the “nucleus” of the community. Shared parking and redensification strategies weave together the church program with retail, commercial, community buildings, medical office, senior housing, conferencing hotel and live/work residential spaces.

Key to much of the mixed-use concept’s success is the option for shared parking and this should be of consideration before embarking on developing a mixed use master plan. Although each jurisdiction will have different ratios, the City of Westminster allows for a 20 percent shared parking ratio. This means that 20 percent of parking can be shared with surrounding uses, for instance office parking lots that may typically be empty on weekends can be opened for church use during Sunday services.

This approach reduces the overall requirement of parking spaces. But it’s also environmentally friendly because it takes less land to accommodate parking needs. In Westminster Nazarene’s case, the first phase calls for a surface lot with short-term parking on a future building site as the surface lot is replaced by future buildings and three “wrapped” parking structures (a wrapped parking structure is one that includes retail space which is more aesthetically pleasing than an exposed garage structure). This is an important strategy that minimizes parking footprints, creating more green open space and a connection with nature.

The plan also provides for a possible transit center on the northern portion of the site, enhancing the ability for the entire population of inhabitants and visitors to the community to be green regarding transit options.

RNL is also helping to design a mixed-use master plan for Christ’s Church of the Valley in Peoria, AZ, that sits on 115 acres of land. One of the fastest growing churches in the country, the church initially conceived of a joint development agreement with a local developer for 200,000-square-feet of development on a 15-acre corner site. The initial concept resulted in a sprawling suburban plan, but by considering and eventually pursuing a denser, 330,000-square-feet development, the church hopes to create greater future value for the land.

The first phase of the project, the children’s and youth buildings just been completed, provides 100,000-square-feet of space. The final campus build-out of 140,000 additional square feet will be used for alternative worship venues, office space, a nursery, children’s rooms, a chapel, numerous outdoor gathering areas, as well as an outdoor amphitheater.

Religious convention space

Thoughts about developing a religious focused convention and meeting facility at the intersection between the church and retail campuses has also been explored as a means of both serving ministry needs and creating another outreach opportunity.

Sixteen acres of mixed-use retail space has been master planned for the northeast corner of the site at the intersection of two well-traveled roads. Transition between the commercial area and the campus buildings is made to draw people in towards an opportunity to worship. Because the church displays no outward symbols of Christianity, places for subtle signage and enticement have been developed at strategic locations of high visibility.

RNL is currently helping CCV entitle the property to make it more attractive to the development community, including usage restriction, height limitations and design guidelines consistent with community standards. This entitlement process is anticipated to take about nine months, and includes shared parking and shared open space agreements that would be unique in Peoria, but have been well-received by the city because of some of the attractive neighborhood and environmental reasons discussed above. CCV anticipates utilizing the newfound cash influx to help grow their ministry and outreach needs, and ultimately grow the church and add new believers.

Mixed-use is a tool for developing diversity, creating a more vibrant livable community that is resource to the entire area. In short, an integrated, mixed-use church master plan can be a vital and relevant bridge to the community both now and in the future.

Doug Spuler is principal and Ken Anderson is senior associate at RNL Design, Denver, CO. [www.RNLDesign.com]

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WHAT IS ‘NEW URBANIST’ TREND?

This “New Urbanist” trend makes sense as we are all doing more with less, and have an increased awareness of how suburban sprawl is a major contributor to the rapid depletion of the earth’s resources.

New Urbanism is characterized by denser, more efficient, master plans that emphasize walkable streets, a mix and balance of uses including residential, office/workplace, retail/leisure and green/open spaces, along with convenient access to public transit.

They are, by their nature, typically more environmentally-friendly due to their density and efficient use of space.

By Fred Perpall

Taking on a building project of any kind just now, in this recession, be it new construction, expansion or refurbishment of an existing space, brings added scrutiny from all parties involved — pastors and staff, volunteer leadership and congregations at large.

I believe there are numerous ways for church communities to successfully navigate projects from start to completion, while being fully aware of a range of cost-saving measures.

Stick to the plan. There should be an immediate goal to achieve transparency throughout a church construction project. It seems incredibly obvious, but it helps immensely if the church leadership involved in a construction project has a well-conceived plan and vision along with a budget well within the congregation’s means brought to the building process.
It’s astounding how often this does not happen and how much this sets a project back. There needs to be firm commitment to stick to that plan, vision and budget, knowing that change along the way is inevitable. From the church’s perspective, there also needs to be a system of checks and balances in place, really just basic accountability, should the project run astray in some fashion, particularly since that likely means additional money will be used.

The question should be asked: “Is there a mechanism in place should that happen?” Going over budget by an excessive amount is crippling for the long-term financial health of a church. An excuse commonly heard is “this project is now in God’s hands” or “God will take care of things” is just not that simple. God doesn’t work like the federal government and isn’t going to provide bailout money for congregations that can’t pay for their construction projects.

Speak with one voice. It’s always critical to ask what is most important for a given ministry’s mission during such a project? A top priority during such a time should involve staying focused, which isn’t necessarily easy considering the complex dynamics of an average church community.

The bottom line is that building committee teams (ideally comprised of individuals with business experience, even from the AEC industry itself), architects and contractors, perhaps even public officials if permits are required, should all sing from the same sheet in order to facilitate communications and ensure the process goes as smoothly as possible.

Use an integrated approach. Through the years I have become a strong proponent of the integrated approach by working on numerous projects in all manners of delivery methods. This entails bringing an entire team of architectural engineering and construction professionals from the same firm together on a given project, known as the Integrated Enterprise.

This is preferred rather than integrating personnel from different companies on a particular project, known as Integrated Project Delivery or Design-Build. Through increased collaboration and a merging of disciplines, a church’s building committee will not have to deal with mistakes, miscommunication and the entire learning curve variable of team members having to learn to work together for the first time.

Trust, rapport and just basic relationship building are all things that can be attained with the church’s leadership a lot more easily through this approach. Integrated Enterprise is a concept gaining in popularity in the building industry, though there are some who are reluctant to merge different disciplines within the same firm.

Use cost and design data. Building Information Modeling (BIM) is invaluable from a cost and time savings standpoint. A project quickly becomes more efficient and cost effective by having accurate and complete information early on as a result of BIM. There simply is no other technology equivalent, and it’s a solution that should be fully leveraged.

As a key component of integrated communication, the goal here is to utilize common BIM tools. BIM is a technology that continues to rapidly evolve and bring more value to the customer, by giving quality cost and design information early in the project, allowing ministry leaders to make sound decisions at the beginning of the project, where there is maximum opportunity to add value and save dollars.

Limit your risk with integration. Taking on less risk is a huge victory in terms of cost savings, and this can happen by working with members of the same firm under the same contract. A church should not have to assume additional risk on cost, schedule or any liability that may arise throughout the traditional design, bid and construct delivery process.

Increases in scope, and mistakes from improper coordination which cause change orders are now eliminated altogether. These changes can result in five to 10 percent overruns on cost in any given project. Any costs caused by incomplete or poorly coordinated information are not the responsibility of the leadership of the ministry; this risk falls to the Integrated Team.

Exposure to warranties, which sometimes creates additional cost for the ministry after project completion, are also removed. Another key opportunity to reduce costs of any project lies in the additional cost added by subcontractors to cover unforeseen costs due to incomplete or uncoordinated information in the architect’s plans. Such contingencies can easily exceed 10 percent and results in additional profit for the subcontractor under “lump sum contracts” if the contingency is not used.

Make sustainability choices. The rapidly moving green movement can easily make its way into churches as well, resulting in many long-lasting cost efficiencies. This is an easy way for these projects to also have a different kind of thought process as it’s not always necessary to go or grow with new construction.

Taking an existing, empty or abandoned environment and transforming it into a new creation, a thriving environment and tool for your ministry to grow seems to underline the message of stewardship we all seek in our ministries’ work. A few easy sustainable choices to consider adding to projects include automatic lights, recycled carpet, thermally efficient glazing, natural an indigenous landscaping strategies, shared parking agreements.

The cost of environmentally friendly materials has declined in recent years, and many of these strategies pay for themselves within a few years, while delivering cost benefit over the life of the project.

Is it a daunting task to engage in a facility project of one kind or another in this down economy? It certainly can be; however, incorporating state-of-the-art technology, exploring sustainable options and working with one firm under one contract, can move the church forward and make sure the experience is less costly.

All of these measures can also bring more value and result in a more positive experience for the ministry and the congregation. The end product marks the creation of a purposeful additional space for a congregation’s needs, whatever those may be.

Fred Perpall is principal and director of design with The Beck Group’s Atlanta office. [www.beckgroup.com]