Sacred synergy achieves goals for religious education [2013 Building Team Award winner]

Columbia Theological Seminary, just east of Atlanta, offers graduate degree programs and continuing education for professionals and lay people in the Presbyterian Church (USA). Devoted to the spiritual growth of students, the seminary’s Vernon S. Broyles Jr. Leadership Center features a modern new classroom facility plus a renovation of the adjacent Simons-Law building, a historic dormitory built in 1932. The project represents a successful collaboration between the owner and other Building Team members—fitting for an educational institution that ranks teamwork and cooperative decisionmaking among its core values.

The original master plan called for the demolition and replacement of Simons-Law. But team members Lord, Aeck & Sargent and New South Construction saw the building as important to the campus, and presented stakeholders (including donors) with a detailed cost analysis that compared new construction with an addition/renovation. They convinced the client to retain the historic structure. Smaller spaces such as offices and seminar rooms would be reprogrammed into Simons-Law, and a 16,000-sf L-shaped addition would house large lecture halls, high-tech seminar rooms, the campus bookstore, a media center, informal study spaces, and a gallery concourse devoted to religious artifacts.

To rehabilitate Simons-Law, the team replaced lighting, HVAC, plumbing, exterior windows, and interior walls and doors. Roof shingles were replaced with synthetic slate, and the structure’s brick and cast stone walls were cleaned and repaired.

The architect also took care to ensure the seamless combination of the Gothic building with its new neighbor. An arcade links Simons-Law’s iconic arched passageway with the new building, creating a cloistered courtyard that also functions as an outdoor classroom.

Daylighting was a concern for the large classroom spaces in the addition, which were outfitted with high-tech A/V systems. The goal was to minimize use of artificial lighting while also avoiding the need for motorized shades. After careful study, the architect, A/V consultant, and CM created a classroom environment that makes excellent use of natural daylight while also ensuring that students will be able to see projections.

Other sustainable strategies included construction of a cistern, allowing rainwater to be collected for irrigation; a new energy-efficient variable refrigerant flow mechanical system; and the harvesting of wood on-site for flooring. The efforts paid off in a successful bid for LEED Gold certification.

The focal point of the project, melding old and new construction, is a neo-Gothic glass-and-brick tower that welcomes visitors to the center. With flooring made from a tree that once stood where the tower was built, this element was designed to unite all aspects of the project. The Building Team provided appropriate structural support for a planned belfry carillon, which will ring chimes for future generations of leaders as they make their way across the scenic campus.

Project summary

BRONZE AWARD

Columbia Theological Seminary

Vernon S. Broyles Jr. Leadership Center

Decatur, Ga.

BUILDING TEAM

Submitting firm: Lord, Aeck & Sargent (architect)

Owner/developer: Columbia Theological Seminary

Structural: Uzun & Case Engineers

MEP: AHA Consulting Engineers

Program manager: Morgan Constructors

A/V consultant: Waveguide Consulting

Construction manager: New South Construction

GENERAL INFORMATION

Project size: 36,500 sf (16,000 sf new + 20,500 sf renovated)

Construction cost: $8.2 million

Construction time: February 2011 to January 2012

Delivery method: CM at risk

The PA/NJ/DE Chapter of the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) has presented the Francis Cauffman architecture firm with two awards: the Best Interior Design of 2011 for the W. L. Gore offices in Elkton, MD, and the President’s Choice Award for St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson, NJ.

| Sep 20, 2011

PPG, Pleotint to co-market environmentally adaptive glazing technology with low-e glass

Laminated between two lites of glass, SRT interlayer may be used monolithically or within an insulating glass unit.

| Sep 19, 2011

Portland team hired as LEED and commissioning consultants for $5.5B downtown sustainable project in Qatar

The $5.5 billion sustainable downtown regeneration project underway by Msheireb Properties will transform a 76 acres site at the centre of Doha, Qatar’s capital city, recreating a way of living that is rooted in Qatari culture, attracting residents back to the city center and reversing the trend for decentralization.

| Sep 16, 2011

Chicago Architecture Foundation partners with seven renowned architects to re-imagine Chicago neighborhoods

Design on the Edge presents plans created by seven teams of nine Chicago-based architects to reimagine seven of the city’s neighborhoods to encourage street life, retail districts and dense housing around the existing “L” transit system.

| Sep 14, 2011

USGBC L.A. Chapter's Green Gala features Jason McLennan as keynote speaker

The Los Angeles Chapter of the nonprofit USGBC will launch its Sustainable Innovation Awards this year during the chapter's 7th Annual Green Gala on Thursday, November 3.

| Sep 14, 2011

Lend Lease’s role in 9/11 Memorial & Museum

Lend Lease is honored to be the general contractor for the National September 11 Memorial & Museum project at the World Trade Center site in New York City.

| Sep 14, 2011

Thornton Tomasetti’s Poon named to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat’s Board of Trustees

During his 30-plus years of experience, Poon has been responsible for the design and construction of super high-rise structures, mixed-used buildings, hotels, airports, arenas and residential buildings worldwide.

| Sep 12, 2011

PVs play new roles as a teaching tool

Solar installations are helping K-12 schools around the country save money and teach students the intricacies of renewable energy sources.

Currently Reading

Sacred synergy achieves goals for religious education [2013 Building Team Award winner]

Tags

| Sep 23, 2011

| Sep 20, 2011

| Sep 20, 2011

| Sep 20, 2011

| Sep 19, 2011

| Sep 16, 2011

| Sep 14, 2011

| Sep 14, 2011

| Sep 14, 2011

| Sep 12, 2011

Most Popular Content

Magazine Subscription

Get our Newsletters

Follow BD+C: