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The Architectural Process
By Viviana Varnado
You have decided to build. You know you need an architect, but how do you choose one? What is the architectural process? Here’s an inside look.
Architects seek to understand your vision for your church. Your vision is the foundation on which we will build the design solution.
The first step in the architectural process is visioning, which includes meetings with the congregation that address the following: Who are we as a church? Whom are we trying to reach? Defining goals and placing them in order of importance creates a priority list that will be used in the decisionmaking process.
The second step is programming. We interview groups and/or individuals representing the different ministries and define your current and future needs based on projected growth. We seek to discover your unique architectural character, the image you want to project to the community—traditional, contemporary, or blended.
A feasibility study determines the highest and best use of a church’s land. If a church does not have a site, feasibility studies will help it evaluate different sites to determine the one that will best suit its long-term goals.
The next step—master planning—includes creating footprint studies that will show how the areas defined in the program can be accommodated on the site. (For an excellent discussion on how technology and workspace-needs should be planned with growth in mind, see the sidebar, "Ever Get Locked in a Closet?") It also includes a probable cost evaluation, phasing, and a building image that reveals the architectural character of the building.
Fund-raising communicates the plans for the future of the church to the congregation. (See the article, "MasterPlan Stewardship Services.") In turn, churches become active participants and acquire a sense of ownership. Color sketches, renderings, 3-D modeling on video, PowerPoint presentations, and display models help communicate the vision.
The schematic design phase defines the rooms, their relationships between spaces, and the exterior image.
The design development phase defines detail, such as heights of ceilings, interior and exterior materials, code issues, structural grids, and mechanical systems.
In the construction documents phase, the project is defined in drawings and specifications that describe it in utmost detail. The contractor uses it to bid and build your facility.
After selecting a bidder, the architect ensures that the project is built according to the construction documents through construction administration, the last phase in the architectural process.
In the end, the building will help you fulfill your calling as a church. Architects feel privileged that they had a part in making it happen.
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Viviana Varnado, RA, NCARB, is senior architectural designer at SPARKS, an architectural firm in Tulsa, Oklahoma. |
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