Major buildings set for Chicago, San Diego, Salt Lake City
'Church of the Future' planned now
By Pat McCaughan
Monday, April 03, 2006
[Episcopal News Service] The church of the future just may be connected to a high-rise. The Diocese of Chicago is moving forward with plans to erect a 64-story elliptical-shaped glass office and condominium tower, which will double its current space and help fund future ministry, said Michael Stephenson, canon for development.
Located on the city's upscale residential North side, the new building will house offices for the diocese, St. James Cathedral and Episcopal Charities and Community Services.
"The space will also include a 65,000 square-foot Canyon Ranch health and wellness center and restaurant, 100 hotel condominiums connected with Canyon Ranch and another 330 private condominium units," Stephenson said.
"It is planned that the new building will be the greenest high-rise building in Chicago, in the forefront of environmental and energy conservation designs," he said. The building, which will also include several floors of parking, is planned to replace the current five-story diocesan and cathedral office building, constructed in 1967.
The Chicago development mirrors a growing national trend among churches of all denominations seeking to maximize land use for ministry, said the Rev. Cindy Voorhees of Voorhees Design (see related story).
"Such churches are typically in inner cities where the real estate market has skyrocketed and a renaissance is occurring in the city and the church has now become again the center point of the city," said Voorhees, a church designer for 16 years and associate rector at St. John's Episcopal Church in Los Angeles. "The churches realize that they can be a more integral part of the city if they offer more direct services, so they partner with developers to do that."
In addition to Episcopal churches, Voorhees' current clientele includes Presbyterian, Baptist, Calvary and nondenominational churches, as well as a synagogue. Typically, such projects can include retail space and underground parking, as well as low-income and high-end housing units like condominiums.
"It's not everyone's model, but this is more millennium thinking, in my view. I think the church needs to become more entrepreneurial in the use of assets. Why not use the land for the benefit of the city and the church?" said Voorhees. "You have churches with a lot of land and very little parking, so they put in underground parking beneath retail outlets and it becomes one big happy family, a kind of symbiotic relationship where everyone wins."
Bishop William Persell of Chicago praised city officials for supporting the plan. "The building's design will be notable on the skyline of our great city, known for its architecture, and the new diocesan and cathedral center and the proceeds from the property lease will greatly enhance our mission," he said.
"Proceeds from the ground lease will fund future mission of the diocese in such areas as congregational development, church starts or more direct ministries," added David Skidmore, communications director.
Construction is expected to start in early 2007 with completion in late 2009.
Additionally, the plans for the new office center have sparked a renewed interest in refurbishing and rendering more accessible nearby St. James Cathedral, Skidmore said. "The Cathedral in tandem is considering innovative approaches to redesign of space in keeping with renovation plans developed in the 1980s that were never realized."
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/3577_73287_ENG_HTM.htm
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