Main Worship Center Remodel

Why a Remodel?

The discussion of remodel of the Main Worship Center was first presented in an elder meeting back in March of 2020. In the Fall of 2020, a design team was put together to explore what a remodel would look like, and how much it would cost. Studio4Design was selected as the architectural design company to help us move forward with determining the look and cost of this remodel. By the Spring of 2021, after several meetings with Studio4Design, a conceptual drawing was presented to the elders as a template that could be used for the final architectural drawing for the Main Worship Center Remodel. This conceptual drawing sought to address four needs for our MWC:

Audio and Lighting: Our AVL (Audio, Video, Lighting) is in desperate need of replacing. Because of the immediacy of the need, the lighting portion of the project has already been completed as of Spring 2023. Acoustic treatment of the room and new speakers and monitors are needed, and the placement of these resources is dependent on the room. Once they are installed, the room needs to stay the same, thus the reasoning for doing a remodel of the room alongside replacing the acoustic treatment and speakers system. Additionally, many of the inputs on the stage are no longer operable, so the remodel will include new inputs and placement that fits with our current digital system.  

Baptistry Accessibility: The design of our current baptistry, though absolutely beautiful, is difficult to access for some. Currently, there are 30 steps to get up to the baptistry. The desire is to have a baptistry that remains beautiful in design but is more accessible to all who desire to follow the Lord in baptism. To accomplish this, the baptistry will be moved down to stage level, requiring far less steps, and adding wheelchair accessibility if possible.  

Growing Population of Powell: We desire to have a space that is able to accommodate the growing population of Powell. When we begin the architectural design phase, we will seek to find out if our current building is able to support a balcony, depending on whether we see a trajectory of growth that will overcrowd our current seating capacity. 

Updating of the Space: We have been incredibly blessed these past 22 years to meet in a such a beautiful space for worship. For the past 16 years, the Main Worship Center has also been able to facilitate the growing ministry of First Baptist Academy and provide a space for Pre-K-12th grade students to gather and worship during the week. We desire to be good stewards of the facilities God has provided us, and we are in great need of updating our space in the MWC.  

Addressing Needs Provides Opportunity. In 2020, the elders wrote this in regards to our worship spaces, “We aim to accentuate the beauty of God revealed supremely in the gospel both in our worship services and in the spaces in which we gather.” In addressing the needs previously mentioned for the Main Worship Center, we have an opportunity to design a space that partners with us in our Gospel-Ordered Worship Services. Every space communicates something. Much like the way Neyland Stadium is designed to communicate a football game takes place within, the worship space can be designed in a way that communicates Jesus is worshiped here. We desire to capture this in a way that accomplishes what the elders have stated about worship space while also representing our Protestant, Baptist heritage of simplicity and beauty.

What will be remodeled?

Audio: As mentioned previously, our audio system, which includes acoustic treatment of the walls and replacing speakers and monitors, is the last step in our AVL update. This will allow for sound to be equally distributed across  

the Main Worship Center and better controlled by the person overseeing our sound for each service. It is better to install audio systems when a room is being remodeled so that it is specific to that space.

Stage: The new stage design allows for optimal use of space with a choir loft that seats 60 and is moveable in order to allow for more depth on the stage  when our seasonal choir is not singing, or when there are school programs  that need more space on the stage. Also, there is a designated area for our band at stage left with stage inputs specific to a digital system. The baptistry is located stage right below the LED wall, which will be inset into the stone wall. There are walkways behind each of the stone walls and storage areas in the walls under the LED screens.  

Backstage Area: The backstage area will be remodeled to include more storage rooms along with greater access under the stage, which will house much of our stage input access routes.  

Congregational Seating Area: Based on the MWC Remodel Survey results and feedback from Sunday School classes, we will be keeping our pews as our main seating. We will have these refurbished with new padding and color, in addition to any other repairs that need to be done. We will also be installing new flooring in the MWC. 

The Point Area: Much of The Point area will stay the same, with the exception of carpet and doors leading into the MWC, which will be replaced to match the MWC.

What is the Cost of the Remodel?

When we first received the conceptual design from Studio4Design, the initial estimate was around $3.4 million. Since we have replaced both projectors and lighting, that cost was reduced to around $3 million. However, with  the removal of the balcony and updating of much of The Point area, that cost has further been reduced to around $2.3 million. The final price will be determined during the architecural drawing phase. It may be slightly less or slightly more, but we do not anticipate it being drastically different than $2.3 million. We do not seek to finance any part of this remodel.  The following is a breakdown of that cost estimate: 

Audio – $250,000

Backstage Area – $345,000

Stage Area – $416,000

Congregational Seating Area – $1,300,000

The Point Area – $20,000

What is the Timeline for  the Remodel? 

September 2023 – We are aiming to raise 50% of the funds by September 2023. Once we reach this point,  Studio4Design will begin the Architectural Drawing Phase.

January 2024 – We are aiming to raise 80% of the funds by January 2024. Once we reach this point, we will begin the remodel phase. This will take between 6-8 months to complete. During this time, we will raise the remaining 20% of the funds so that the project can be paid in full by the time of completion.  

Summer 2024 – We are aiming to have 100% of the funds raised and the entirety of the project completed by summer 2024.

We ask that you prayerfully seek the Lord’s guidance in your giving to this project. Our timeline for the Main Worship Center remodel is 12-18 months total, but we trust the Lord’s timing and will to be done. 

Please join us as we continue to prayerfully seek the Lord’s guidance on this project. We are excited about this opportunity to update our Main Worship Center and look forward to sharing more information with you as we move through this process!