Specialty Construction
Bethany Community Church
Architect: Miller|Hull Partnership
Engineers: Magnusson Klemencic Associates (structural), SVR Design Co. (civil), Merit Mechanical, Rogers Electric Co.
Owner: Bethany Community Church
ABC members: Audio Acoustics, CHG Building Systems, iLevel By Weyerhaeuser, Kibble & Prentice (a USI company), Matheus Lumber Co., Merit Mechanical, Nuprecon, Propel Insurance, Rodgers Electric Co., Salmon Bay Sand & Gravel Co., Wilder Construction Co.
Kirtley-Cole Associates built a 15,000-square-foot sanctuary for Bethany Community Church in Seattle's Green Lake neighborhood. The $4.9 million project included nursery rooms, a choir room, a lobby and flexible educational space.
As part of the construction process, Kirtley-Cole had to demolish several homes on church property. The site was surrounded by occupied buildings such as the Christian Education building, Bagley Elementary School and neighborhood homes. In order to ensure the safety of residents, students, church staff and construction workers, the contractor focused on communicating all pertinent information to the community and adjusted its work schedule to accommodate bus and school schedules.
The sanctuary has large windows that provide significant natural light while overlooking the surrounding neighborhood. To adjust light levels for screen projection, the team installed a 30-foot door on the stage that can dampen the natural light as needed. Crews also created a sunlit aperture at the back of the stage that allows muted sunlight to highlight the cross.
Throughout the sanctuary, wood elements accent the space and exposed glu-lam beams and columns frame a custom wood ceiling and wall panels that conceal the acoustic insulation. To serve the multi-generational congregation, the acoustics of the main space were designed to maximize sound quality for a variety of performance styles. The altar also can be used as a stage, augmented by an audio-visual system, projection screen and theater lighting.
The lobby has a backdrop of curved brick and a colonnade of glass and concrete columns. It opens to a terrace and residential street, creating a community focal point.
The project team came up with several creative solutions throughout the project, including building a shared parking lot. Land-use requirements specified a certain number of parking spaces for the project, however, the church lacked the property for that. Because the neighboring elementary school also faced parking challenges, Kirtley-Cole built a 93-space parking lot on the school property to be used by the school during the day and by the church for evening and weekend events.
The project came in under budget with no injuries during the 22,248 hours worked.