Lutheran Church of Hope - Johnston Grimes
A gathering place nestled into the landscape welcomes an expanding church community
Information
- Location Grimes, Iowa
- Size 21,150 SF
- Completion 2018
- Services Architecture
- Project Type Religious
Lutheran Church of Hope – Grimes is a satellite facility of a large, multi-campus Evangelical Lutheran Church in the heart of Iowa. The 21,150 square-foot building serves as a community and worship center for a fast-growing congregation within an expanding rural community. The building is shaped with two simple volumes. The darker worship form is crafted with a hand-made texture of clay tiles and serves as the vessel where larger worship and education functions reside. The lower single-story white, metal clad-form serves as a support bar to the larger worship form and creates a warm “front porch” with the incorporation of cedar and a cantilevered protective overhang. The cross stands as a third element in the composition marking the entrance and balancing the building composition.
Impact + Innovation
The site is part of a larger planned residential and commercial development focused on walkability and community. The site topography, configuration, and orientation allowed the building to be placed near the center of the site and be oriented toward a regional storm water pond, an informal outdoor worship space, and community vehicular round-a-bout. Vehicular and pedestrian traffic flow around the southern and western boundaries allowing the building to be viewed from a distance as a humble form nestled into the earth. Worshippers and visitors approach and enter the building from a modest one story “porch” on the east and have views to the site and pond from the interior. Gathering spaces, educational facilities, and a flexible 400-seat worship space enable residents to grow and connect within the life of the church and the surrounding community.
People
Team
- Kevin Nordmeyer
- Dana Sorensen
- Kayla Berkson
- Carey Nagle
- Ishita Banerjee
- Saranya Panchaseelan
Client
Lutheran Church of Hope
Awards
The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture & Design & The European Centre for Architecture Art American Architecture Award
2020
AIA Kansas
Honor Award, Architectural Project
2019
AIA Iowa
Honor Award
2019
AIA Kansas City
Merit Award
2019