Interfaith Design

Small firms have the same design challenges as larger firms, but their resources differ, and projects may be different in scale and budget. I am curious to learn how other small and smaller mid-size firms address certain issues in their design efforts for faith-based communities.  I would love to hear your answers to the following questions to inform an upcoming article. 

1. Often smaller or start-up faith-based projects come with small budgets.  How do you strategize with church representatives to align funds with design priorities?
2. Though each faith-based project is unique, perhaps there is a common approach to the design process.  Do you have a process template or outline that you reference at the beginning of each project?  If so, please share a summary of this outline.
3. What challenges have you faced working with committees versus having a staff member be your main point of contact? How does that affect your process?
4. What is your experience designing for non-denominational churches?  How does designing for these communities differ from traditional churches?
5.  Part of the process of working with clients is learning who they are and what is important to them.  Once that focus or priority is discovered, how does that knowledge guide both your design process and the design itself?
6. Do you have some kind of process template that you use as a guide for faith-based projects?
7.  Sometimes one simple design move can have a lot of impact ("more bang for the buck!).  Can you provide an example of such a design move or feature that helped bring success to a faith-based project?
8. Please post your answers here to develop a discussion.  As mentioned above, the answers to these questions are to inform an article on this topic and you will be credited (if you wish).  If you are interested in speaking with me directly, please let me know and we can set up a time to visit.

Eva Read-Warden, AIA

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Eva Read-Warden AIA
The Arkitex Studio Inc
Bryan TX
eva@arkitex.com
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Great questions! Some responses:

2. Many of our church clients are either starting their first large building project, or it's been many years since the church built anything, so there's a gap in the knowledge of the whole process. With that, we typically begin our services by a brief summary of the whole process to the church leadership. Then, we focus on current needs, issues, and future projections. We present several concept options and receive their feedback. Understanding what is not working for the client is just as important as what is.

5. We had one church who needed to house over 2200 people for one week in summer for a conference, and then for Christmas and Easter. The rest of the year, they needed 1500, so how do you make a church work for 1500 and not feel overly huge for much of the year? And, the budget shrank about $1,000,000.00 as well, so the initial concept of tilt up construction with moveable bleachers in the back became undoable. We revised the seating ideas, and instead of movable bleachers, we designed the lobby to have sliding walls and could double as extra seating when needed. A prayer room adjacent to the sanctuary also became flexible space, thus allowing the 2200 seating when needed, without it dominating the sanctuary space for the rest of the year. To save money, we worked with a prefab metal building company and used their maximum column free span without special fabrication. The final project feels much more like a custom built church rather than an off shelf metal building. 

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Scott Feltheim AIA
SDG Architecture LLC
Tucson AZ
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Scott-

These are great responses and provide helpful information for others doing such work.  Thanks for sharing!  Please let me know of you have any other insights or even photos to share.

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Eva Read-Warden AIA
The Arkitex Studio Inc
Bryan TX
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Original Message:
Sent: 10-07-2025 02:43 PM
From: Scott Feltheim
Subject: Process and challenges: faith-based projects and smaller firms

Great questions! Some responses:

2. Many of our church clients are either starting their first large building project, or it's been many years since the church built anything, so there's a gap in the knowledge of the whole process. With that, we typically begin our services by a brief summary of the whole process to the church leadership. Then, we focus on current needs, issues, and future projections. We present several concept options and receive their feedback. Understanding what is not working for the client is just as important as what is.

5. We had one church who needed to house over 2200 people for one week in summer for a conference, and then for Christmas and Easter. The rest of the year, they needed 1500, so how do you make a church work for 1500 and not feel overly huge for much of the year? And, the budget shrank about $1,000,000.00 as well, so the initial concept of tilt up construction with moveable bleachers in the back became undoable. We revised the seating ideas, and instead of movable bleachers, we designed the lobby to have sliding walls and could double as extra seating when needed. A prayer room adjacent to the sanctuary also became flexible space, thus allowing the 2200 seating when needed, without it dominating the sanctuary space for the rest of the year. To save money, we worked with a prefab metal building company and used their maximum column free span without special fabrication. The final project feels much more like a custom built church rather than an off shelf metal building. 

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Scott Feltheim AIA
SDG Architecture LLC
Tucson AZ
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I agree with Scott-great questions.

1. Often smaller or start-up faith-based projects come with small budgets.  How do you strategize with church representatives to align funds with design priorities? I agree with what others have said-we have been able to design over 100 church projects as a small firm but have never had a project where the budget wasn't half or less of the stated needs! (We haven't done projects in TX - Sorry, I had to poke fun :) I do believe that an aspiring vision, "thick" programming, and a strong "story" can raise more funds than expected. 
2. Though each faith-based project is unique, perhaps there is a common approach to the design process.  Do you have a process template or outline that you reference at the beginning of each project?  If so, please share a summary of this outline. We don't do even small projects without a "thick" programming session.
3. What challenges have you faced working with committees versus having a staff member be your main point of contact? How does that affect your process? Similar to others, we insist on only one point of contact. We use Task Forces instead of Committees, but only during PD.
4. What is your experience designing for non-denominational churches?  How does designing for these communities differ from traditional churches? We have found that theology informs how we are treated as Architects and how the project flows. In liturgical churches, Architects are more trusted professionals that can lead the project, where Non-denom's (my world) tend to be more suspicious of being led. It's sad, but us non-denom's are not used to hierarchy and accountability.
5.  Sometimes one simple design move can have a lot of impact ("more bang for the buck!).  Can you provide an example of such a design move or feature that helped bring success to a faith-based project? Agreed. One simple tip: Avoid hallways. As one example, in the children's areas, we have a children's "Lobby" directly accessed from main lobby that doubles as a parent drop-off area, then the children's worship/ gathering area, while all of the classrooms open into this space with glass garage doors or in other ways. We did a new 50K sf 1,100-seat church with only 63' of hallway over two stories. 

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Rev. Steven Barduson AIA, PhD(cand.)
Barduson Architects
Phoenix AZ
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Original Message:
Sent: 10-07-2025 02:43 PM
From: Scott Feltheim
Subject: Process and challenges: faith-based projects and smaller firms

Great questions! Some responses:

2. Many of our church clients are either starting their first large building project, or it's been many years since the church built anything, so there's a gap in the knowledge of the whole process. With that, we typically begin our services by a brief summary of the whole process to the church leadership. Then, we focus on current needs, issues, and future projections. We present several concept options and receive their feedback. Understanding what is not working for the client is just as important as what is.

5. We had one church who needed to house over 2200 people for one week in summer for a conference, and then for Christmas and Easter. The rest of the year, they needed 1500, so how do you make a church work for 1500 and not feel overly huge for much of the year? And, the budget shrank about $1,000,000.00 as well, so the initial concept of tilt up construction with moveable bleachers in the back became undoable. We revised the seating ideas, and instead of movable bleachers, we designed the lobby to have sliding walls and could double as extra seating when needed. A prayer room adjacent to the sanctuary also became flexible space, thus allowing the 2200 seating when needed, without it dominating the sanctuary space for the rest of the year. To save money, we worked with a prefab metal building company and used their maximum column free span without special fabrication. The final project feels much more like a custom built church rather than an off shelf metal building. 

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Scott Feltheim AIA
SDG Architecture LLC
Tucson AZ
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1. Often smaller or start-up faith-based projects come with small budgets.  How do you strategize with church representatives to align funds with design priorities? START FROM SCRATCH. WILL MINISTRY DRIVE PROGRAM OR WILL AFFINITIES? THINK MULTI-USE FROM THE OUTSET TO MAXIMIZE SPACE USAGE. FOR INSTANCE…NO DESIGNATED OFFICES. STAFF IS FULLY PORTABLE USING SPACE FOR WEEKEND MINISTRY DAILY
2. Though each faith-based project is unique, perhaps there is a common approach to the design process.  Do you have a process template or outline that you reference at the beginning of each project?  If so, please share a summary of this outline. TALK A LOT BEFORE ANY LINES ARE DRAWN. PROCESS DEPENDS ON THEIR EXPERIENCED LEVEL IN FACILITY DESIGN
3. What challenges have you faced working with committees versus having a staff member be your main point of contact? How does that affect your process? DON'T DO COMMITTEES. IF THEIR GOVERNANC STRUCTURE REQUIRES COMMITTEES INSIST UPON ONE POINT OF CONTACT. ONE OR TWO PEOPLE USUALLY MAKE ALL THE DECISIONS EVEN IF THERE IS A COMITTEE
4. What is your experience designing for non-denominational churches?  How does designing for these communities differ from traditional churches? NON-DENOM TYPICALLY IS ALL STAFF DRIVEN. TRADITIONAL TYPICALLY COMMITTEEE ALTHOUGH THAT'S CHANGING
5.  Part of the process of working with clients is learning who they are and what is important to them.  Once that focus or priority is discovered, how does that knowledge guide both your design process and the design itself? LEAN INTO DESIGN BASED ON THEIR AFFINITIES. " IF YOU WERE A RETAIL BRAND WHAT BRAND WOULD YOU BE MOST LIKE, OR WANT TO BE LIKE"?
6. Do you have some kind of process template that you use as a guide for faith-based projects?
7.  Sometimes one simple design move can have a lot of impact ("more bang for the buck!).  Can you provide an example of such a design move or feature that helped bring success to a faith-based project? SIMPLIFICATION AND LEAN DESIGN THINKING IS KEY. COLOR OF PAINT DOESN'T DRIVE COST. USE COLOR. TEXTURES AND RHYTHM AS WELL.

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Darren Heine
President
BBA Architects, LP
Brenham, TX
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Great questions.  I think IDKC should put together a panel discussion on this topic.

1.This is the great Challenge. As a small firm sometimes, we are successful other times not.  It comes down to leadership and commitment and illustrating a design so that it can be properly estimated.  A congregation needs to be willing to do the ask…whether it be time or money and leveraging everyone's network is important. Some congregations hire fundraising consultants to help with this. We have done projects in Texas but honestly it is not the location that is the critical factor, it is the commitment of the leadership.

2.We start with programming as mentioned and then do concept design. After that is complete, we do a pricing document that allows contractors and estimators to put numbers to the project we included phases and options.  This is typically the basis for a fundraising campaign

3.We have seen committees work and singular leadership work. It takes a unified vision of the board that they want to do something and the commitment of the congregation to move forward that once decisions are made, they will not back down or change their mind.

4.More of our work has been synagogues, however we have proposed for Unitarian Congregations and what one might call non-denominational religious institutions. In the end it is all very similar.  For a congregation to move a vision forward, they need internal leadership and leadership and guidance for their architect.  Ther needs to be a good fit. The architect needs to recognize that they are designing a home for a congregation and listening is the key.

5.I think educating your client in the designs process is key and architects should be storytellers. We should listen to and create a story for the congregation that reflects their personality and identity.  For example, the Telyas Chabad Jewish Center wanted to emphasize that they were more than a synagogue they were a community center and so the parti plan diagram was that of a small town while talking about social engagement while also helping to connect it to the landscape.

6.I leverage my business partners 50 years of working on faith-based projects and we have largely standardized our process but in the end every congregation is unique you need to be a good listener and be able to pivot.

7.We worked on a project in Scarsdale NY, and we leveraged the roof and primary 4 columns to create a thematic design a traditional Jewish wedding canopy a "chuppah" this became the base organizational element and enabled us to alter their circulation accessibility and bring clarity to their sanctuary.

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Joshua Zinder AIA
Joshua Zinder Architecture + Design
Princeton NJ
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Joshua-

Thanks for these responses.  I am inspired by how we all work with different groups in different places but find common ground in the process and approach.  Your examples are also very helpful in conveying the information you have shared.  Thanks for taking the time!

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Eva Read-Warden AIA
The Arkitex Studio Inc
Bryan TX
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Original Message:
Sent: 11-10-2025 09:34 PM
From: Joshua Zinder, AIA
Subject: Process and challenges: faith-based projects and smaller firms

Great questions.  I think IDKC should put together a panel discussion on this topic.

1.This is the great Challenge. As a small firm sometimes, we are successful other times not.  It comes down to leadership and commitment and illustrating a design so that it can be properly estimated.  A congregation needs to be willing to do the ask…whether it be time or money and leveraging everyone's network is important. Some congregations hire fundraising consultants to help with this. We have done projects in Texas but honestly it is not the location that is the critical factor, it is the commitment of the leadership.

2.We start with programming as mentioned and then do concept design. After that is complete, we do a pricing document that allows contractors and estimators to put numbers to the project we included phases and options.  This is typically the basis for a fundraising campaign

3.We have seen committees work and singular leadership work. It takes a unified vision of the board that they want to do something and the commitment of the congregation to move forward that once decisions are made, they will not back down or change their mind.

4.More of our work has been synagogues, however we have proposed for Unitarian Congregations and what one might call non-denominational religious institutions. In the end it is all very similar.  For a congregation to move a vision forward, they need internal leadership and leadership and guidance for their architect.  Ther needs to be a good fit. The architect needs to recognize that they are designing a home for a congregation and listening is the key.

5.I think educating your client in the designs process is key and architects should be storytellers. We should listen to and create a story for the congregation that reflects their personality and identity.  For example, the Telyas Chabad Jewish Center wanted to emphasize that they were more than a synagogue they were a community center and so the parti plan diagram was that of a small town while talking about social engagement while also helping to connect it to the landscape.

6.I leverage my business partners 50 years of working on faith-based projects and we have largely standardized our process but in the end every congregation is unique you need to be a good listener and be able to pivot.

7.We worked on a project in Scarsdale NY, and we leveraged the roof and primary 4 columns to create a thematic design a traditional Jewish wedding canopy a "chuppah" this became the base organizational element and enabled us to alter their circulation accessibility and bring clarity to their sanctuary.

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Joshua Zinder AIA
Joshua Zinder Architecture + Design
Princeton NJ
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