The Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, designed by 5G Studio Collaborative, aimed to address the needs and desires of the growing community through sustainable capital improvements on the existing campus that sought to reflect the past and contemporary contexts. Through dialogue, observation, and reimagination, the potential to reposition the existing underutilized courtyard as the centroid of the Church’s social life became evident. Beginning with the courtyard and progressively outwards to the lot perimeter, the new campus design creates places of varying moods and moments to enrich the Church’s environmental and social connectivity with its neighbors. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Landlocked on all sides, its campus is among typical suburban residential subdivisions. An existing Church, a private school, and a failing multi-purpose building define the campus’ three edges, enclosing an undistinguished courtyard with disorganized placement of paths and accessorial structures.
A new single-story, 9,500 sq.ft. activity center will replace the existing multi-purpose building. While fronting respectfully towards the neighborhood, the new building inwardly strengthened the relationship of the Church’s events towards the new courtyard. Large expanses of clear glazing delineated its southern edge. A folding metal roof appeared to levitate over the indoor spaces without visible columns. Transparent spaces, views to the outdoor, daylight, and natural materials permeated the experiential qualities inside the building. Programmatic spaces were positioned to maximize casual interactions between events.
Polished, integral-colored concrete would reflect the daylight coming off the windows, clerestory, and skylight onto the walls and ceilings made of polished plaster and tongue-and-groove wood decking over laminated wood beams. Rich colors would contrast with deep, modeled grays and variedly-coursed, over-sized natural stone. The materials would complement the spatial structure and provide a backdrop for flexible programming, from the playful to the reverent.
The resultant levity and transparency of the architecture articulated the admirable intention of a traditional Church desiring to reflect her contemporary sociocultural relevance for which The Rev. Dr. Steve Danzey noted “Our parish leaders are very excited about this project both in terms of design and function. The design of the building and the master plan pull together existing structures and spaces to create the sense of a unified campus. The contemporary design of the new building, which fits in nicely with existing buildings, also communicates that we are committed to serving the community for many years to come. We’ve dreamed for many years about a building like this which would serve well not only the many ministries of our parish and school, but give us the kind of flexible space that can be adapted to a growing and changing community.”
Architects: 5G Studio Collaborative Location: 2700 Warren Circle, Irving, Texas, United States Team: Yen Ong, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP BD+C, Hoang Dang, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP BD+C, Fred Meyer, LEED AP BD+C, Josh Allen, Tiffany Axner Structural Consultant: GroupStructural Engineers Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing Consultant: Image Engineering Group Civil Engineer: Pacheco Koch Consulting Engineers Landscape Architect: Hocker Design Group Client: Episcopal Church of the Redeemer Materials: Oversized Natural Stone, Cement Board Paneling, Polished, Integral-Colored Portland Cement Plaster, Prefinished Standing Seam Metal Roofing, Polished, Integral-Colored Concrete Flooring, Baltic Birch Wood Paneling, Tectum Acoustical Paneling, TG Roof Wood Decking over Laminated Wood Beam, Custom Aluminum and Clear, Insulated Glazing Text By: Yen Ong, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP BD+C, Co-Founder and Partner of 5G Studio Collaborative
