One of the reasons that we host our free i3 webinars live is that it allows for interaction with our Internet audience. After each webinar, we make time for questions and answers about church building and design. In this post, we once again share our responses to questions from recent i3 webinars.
“Do you have somebody on your team who helps figure out sound and lighting design for church building?”
In responding to this question, we need to begin with some definitions. When it comes to lighting, there are two types of design. The first is what we call house lighting or floor lighting. These are the lights installed for everyday use in a church building. For your worship space, this will include the kinds of lights that are on in a theater when you first walk in and are trying to find your seat. For other areas of your church building, this includes standard lighting and some specialty lights, such as the types of fixtures you want in your café or restrooms. We assist you in determining the best lighting for your church building needs.
When it comes to stage lighting design, audio and video for your worship space or other rooms, we do not have a person on staff to handle them directly. Instead, we have several audio, video, and lighting firms that we partner with for these design elements. We recommend these teams because we have worked with them on prior church building projects and trust their expertise. If you have someone in your church community that you would like us to work with, we are also willing to partner with them.
“Do you often suggest tearing down a church building rather than rebuilding?”
No, we very seldom do that. As long as your church building is structurally sound, it’s much more cost effective to expand or remodel an existing facility. Think about it this way: You would have to pay someone to tear down the old church building, then pay someone to build the new building from scratch. So, if your existing church building is feeling cramped or outdated, the best first step is to have a conversation with us about how we might remodel your existing facility. Unless you are totally out of land and have no direction to go besides up—and the existing structure can’t support additional weight—we usually recommend remodeling your current church building.
“Does The McKnight Group handle all church building permit needs?”
Yes, we do, with the caveat that we like the church to be involved in the zoning process. We handle the building and site permits and such. With zoning permits, we find it’s important for church representatives to attend public zoning meetings. It gives church leaders a chance to share their vision and for community members to meet and talk with church attendees. It’s about being active in the community as a local church. You also get to hear the questions and concerns being raised and address them right up front.
As you can see, there are many aspects involved in thinking through every church building project. This is why we offer our free i3 webinars and encourage you to come and bring your questions. Sign up for our next i3 webinar today.