Sometimes your church vision changes so radically that you need a new church building to hold it. However, that doesn’t mean a new building needs to be constructed. Here is another situation where an existing structure, built for another purpose, is converted into a functional church building.
We’ve talked about converting big box stores and school buildings. In this example, we worked with a church to convert a warehouse for church building use.
A New Home for Linden Life Fellowship
Linden Life Fellowship is one church community with two histories. In 2014, two different churches in the Columbus, Ohio, area merged to form this new community. Each group had a small existing church building, but they needed something larger in order to worship together. After they approached The McKnight Group for help, we looked at available buildings in their area. We found a carpet warehouse and drafted a creative church design to meet their ministry needs.
From Warehouse to Church Building
As you can see here, small outside changes transformed this church building from less industrial to more attractive. But in this situation, we focused most of the time and money in the interior church design. As pictured, the prior warehouse had an unfinished interior, which meant clearing the space for its new use required less work.
We subdivided the warehouse to create classrooms, restrooms, and a kitchen, along with the foyer, which you see here. This entry area includes some nice seating areas and a fireplace (the focal point) that encourage guests and attendees to sit down together and get to know each other. We 
carpeted the entire church building with neutral shades and created a color palette that blends with the building’s façade. Bringing the same style of stonework from the entryway into the fireplace created a cohesive feel for the entire church building.
A Modern Church Design for Worship
A welcoming space for worship is one key component of any good church design. Here, you can see we designed a bright room that seats about two hundred people. It includes a sound booth and a simple, very flexible platform that draws the eye to that portion of the room. Ceiling tiles and a modern light system now cover the building structure that were once visible in the 
interior pre-remodel photo above.
Converting this warehouse into a functional, attractive church building was a case of good stewardship for this newly merged community. Remodeling other types of existing buildings with a good church design is always one possibility for any church community. We’ve seen car dealerships, grocery stores, strip centers, and school buildings transformed into functional church buildings.
To learn more about creative church design possibilities, sign up for our free i3 webinars, where we share the latest information on a variety of church design and building trends and innovative ideas. To learn more, visit our webinar page.