Fellowship Wing
Beyond its spiritual mission, Westport Presbyterian has also been a major patron of the arts for decades. “The church has been very active in the promotion of the arts in Westport for about the past 35 years. Members of the church founded an arts non-profit called the Westport Center of the Arts,” Heitman says. “So the church also wanted space where they could exhibit art and be a comfortable, inviting place for the community.”
The Fellowship Wing was designed to fulfill this role. The new construction storefront was built to complement the restored sanctuary building. It is open to the community every day of the week and also helped in overall site design.
“One of the challenges was that we wanted to preserve this beautiful church, but it sat almost ominously on a hill, 10-feet above the sidewalk elevation,” Heitman says. “We wanted to make the building welcoming and inviting, but it also had to address the natural topography and that 10-foot change in elevation from the first floor to the sidewalk. The Storefront, a 1,000-squarefoot community room located on the sidewalk level, was part of that solution. The Storefront is connected to the main building and allows the church to extend its ministry to the street; however, it can also function autonomously as a community meeting room or gallery space. We used the existing topography of the sidewalk as the start of an accessible ramp that loops around the Storefront. On top of the Storefront, a green roof helps to create a pleasant, accessible entrance that is part of the landscape and part of the architecture.”
Completed in April 2016, the restored Westport Presbyterian Church recently celebrated its one-year anniversary. The congregation is thriving and the new church is a very active part of the vibrant community it inhabits. “The church is positioned to be an important community center,” Heitman says. “They host fantastic concerts, like jazz and organ performances. The acoustics are amazing. They’ve also hosted readings of plays and have had an artist exhibiting his work in the space. And it’s a flexible worship space. It’s an eclectic mix of things happening.”
There’s an old saying, often attributed to Winston Churchill, “never let a good crisis go to waste.” Of course, the fire that destroyed the original Westport Presbyterian Church was tragic, but a determined, forward-looking congregation was able to seize the moment and forge something even better for the future.
“I don’t know that an architect gets to work on many projects in their career that take on such meaning,” Heitman says. “It was fantastic to work with this congregation. They did their homework and had an idea of what they wanted to be. They just needed an architect to help turn their vision into a building.”
Retrofit Team
Architect and Landscape Architect: BNIM, Kansas City, Mo.
- Evin Nordmeyer, Principal, Design Advisor
- Bob Berkebile, Principal
- Erik Heitman, Project Manager, Project Architect
- Sam DeJong, Project Architect
- Carly Pumphrey, Programming, Interior Architect
- Brian McKinney, Technical Advisor
- Aaron Ross, Landscape Architect
- Elise Hubbard, Landscape Architect
- Adam Wiechman, Landscape Architect
Architectural Acoustics and Audiovisual Design: Jaffe Holden, Norwalk, Conn.
M/E/P Engineers: Henderson Engineers Inc., Lenexa, Kan.
Structural Engineers: Bob D. Campbell & Co., Kansas City
Civil Engineers: Kaw Valley Engineering Inc., Kansas City
Code Consultant: F.S.C. Inc., Overland Park, Kan.
General Contractor: A.L. Huber General Contractor, Overland Park
Materials
Zinc Flat-Lock Wall Panels and Roofing: VM Zinc
Kansas Limestone, Cottonwood, Honed (Fellowship Wing): U.S. Stone Industries
Green Roof System: Henry Co.
Dash Bench and Bevel Bench: Forms + Surfaces
Permeable Pavers: Hanover Architectural Products
Luxrail LED Handrail: Cooper Industries
Wall Luminaires (Exterior): BEGA
21-stop Pipe Organ: Pasi Organ Builders Inc.
Wood Panel Grille Ceiling and Wall Systems (Sanctuary): Rulon International
Salvaged Wood Wall Paneling and Stair Treads (Sanctuary and Chapel): Elmwood Reclaimed Timber
White Oak Radius Pews and Chairs (Sanctuary and Chapel): Ratigan-Schottler Manufacturing
White Oak Flooring (Sanctuary andChapel): ACME Floor Co.
LED Pendant Lighting (Sanctuary and Chapel): TECH Lighting
Claro Acoustical Ceiling System (Fellowship Room): Decoustics
Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) System: Daikin
Photo: Michael Robinson