When architect David Evans was asked to renovate the Antioch Bible Baptist Church in Gladstone, Mo., he was given the task of transforming the three-building campus into a new seamless space featuring a state-of-the-art children’s center. “Our first task was to form a leadership committee [that] would make the project a reality, comprised of people with specific areas of expertise such as construction, finance or business,” says Evans, president of Kansas City, Mo.-based architectural firm Mantel Teter. “Stylistically the structure was not relevant, and we required many voices, from the architect to the pastor.”
The centerpiece of the new space was a children’s ministry building, designed to create awareness and attract families to the church. There was a need for expansive spaces that catered to large groups and encouraged community fellowship. The new lobby voiced “the art of arrival” as a space for connecting and promoting connection and conversation. The expansion was welcome--the new design greeted nearly 1,000 congregants on Sunday.
