St. Paul’s Lutheran Church

Location: Durham, NC
Date: 2009

DTW Architects designed the additions and complete renovation of this church. It was important to the congregation that the church become more welcoming to passersby: its 1960s windowless sanctuary façade, which faces a large intersection, had an imposing appearance. The interior of the existing building was dark and dated, but more importantly, its uses had morphed over time so that similar uses were not always adjacent.

The architects addressed various handicap-accessibility issues with an addition in three parts: a long lobby with a thirty-five foot skylight, a 3,000 SF fellowship hall with commercial-grade kitchen, and a two-story wing housing new offices and classrooms. The addition also created a courtyard space between the new fellowship hall and the existing sanctuary. Other work included a small elevator addition, a complete renovation of the sanctuary including new stained glass triptych, reorganization and new finishes in the rest of the building, and new plumbing, mechanical and electrical upgrades. The property nearly doubled from 17,500 SF to over 33,000 SF.