Tag: conference and training rooms (3)

Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd | Preserving Character

LUTHERAN CHURCH OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD | PRESERVING CHARACTER The Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Minneapolis had begun to turn the page into a new chapter, which called for an adaptation to their sacred space to meet contemporary needs. Originally built over 65 years ago, the renovation aimed to uphold the historic integrity and respectfully adapting the Vic Gilbertson, FAIA mid-century modern church to meet current programmatic needs. The Kodet Team understood the importance of this historic restoration and through carefully studying sketches and the building’s artwork we were able to develop a better understanding for the back-story and connection to the details. Integral to the renovation was the idea of strengthening the bond between the church and the congregation, which reflects the celebration of their faith and community. The ever-present theme was preservation + improving functionality to serve current and future generations. ARCHITECTURAL SOLUTION The renovation and restoration looked how to make the best use of the buildings great art and architecture. A key element was to connect the existing sanctuary to the existing courtyard originally separated by brick wall with stained glass windows. By removing the south wall of the nave, we were able to expand the space by creating large custom wood sliding doors. These grand doors open the worship space to the new catwalk, which features a balcony overlooking the updated exterior courtyard. The worship expansion and inclusion of these custom doors incorporated the relocated original stained glass and allows a full view over the courtyard and introduces natural light into the sanctuary. Most importantly, we were able to creatively save and utilize the existing stained glass panels. By using materials original to the building and combining this with the glass, the changes transformed the church from an introverted interior focused space to a […]

District Facilities Planning Process

Is your district considering embarking on a District-Wide Facilities Comprehensive Planning process? Or, is your district experiencing facility accommodation, capacity, efficiency, and/or space utilization challenges? If so, this is a very exciting time for your district! But it may also be a bit daunting if you’re unsure of where to start. Through our experience working with schools, districts, and other educational facility master planners, we have developed a brief overview of the first steps in our District-Wide Facility Comprehensive Planning process for your reference (shown below). We hope this overview helps to clarify what the beginning of this process would look like once the design team has been hired by the district. All design teams and districts are different, so keep in mind that all steps are flexible to adjust to the unique characteristics, needs, and preferences of the team, district, and community. 1) Educational Visioning Event A one-day event that invites the community to envision the future of education in their community. This event kicks off the comprehensive planning process as a community-wide endeavor. Potential discussion topics include:   2) Steering Committee Formation Establishing a Steering Committee, or a Task Force, helps to guide the comprehensive planning process. The committee’s responsibilities include: Represent the district and community in the planning process Review and discuss Educational Visioning Event findings Formulate questions for Community Dialogue meetings Provide feedback to design team throughout process Develop a recommendation to the Superintendent 3) Community Dialogue #1 The first Community Dialogue focuses on creating an educational framework for the district. The educational framework developed will guide the planning process by attempting to define: Grade configuration Class size Number of facilities Criteria for determining facility lifespan Strategies for building and site disposition 4) Community Dialogue #1 Findings The design team will assess and present the Community Dialogue #1 findings to the Steering […]