Title: Watts Chapel Church
Location of Proejct: Raleigh, North Carolina
Project Completion Date: N/A
Firm Name: Andre Johnson Architect, PLLC

Short Description: Watts Chapel Missionary Baptist Church has been a cornerstone of the community since 1876. To address the increase of new members, new programs were incorporated into the existing site. This program will include a new sanctuary with increased capacity for worshipers, an education facility with expanded classrooms and office space as well as amenity spaces that serve the needs of the church and the community. The design of the building takes full advantage of natural daylight into the spaces created and the formal qualities of the church such as organization and materials create a strong visual presence on the site.

Architect's Statement: This project is Phase 1 of the master plan which is construction of a new sanctuary and education building, new landscaping, new parking lot, and site improvements.

The topography of the site has gradual shifts in elevation, situating the church and the added structures near the higher elevated areas of the property. In addition, a 25% tree conservation was achieved. With the construction of new buildings and expanded parking, calculating impervious surface coverage was needed as well as a new retention pond added to the first phasing of the master plan. The goal for the site development was to offset as much of the new construction impervious with sustainable site and building features.

The design team came up with two options for the parking layout. One which might place the new building next to the existing building and move parking to the side, and another, considering budget and less impact on the church, keeping the existing parking spaces and only developing the new building.

The process of design consists of pushing the design beyond its typical form. Watts Chapel underwent a process of re-defining the current church model. The cut, physically splits the church to appropriately separate programs based on use such as worship and recreational spaces, while maintaining connections through corridors. The scale approach allows for a greater square footage to be reached to accommodate the increased membership and diversity in program spaces. Through the lift and push method, a visible hierarchy is established by emphasizing the taller volume for the sanctuary and the lower volume for educational and recreational activities. With greening, natural sun shading devices such as the introduction of a courtyard and vegetation not only decrease energy consumption but also create natural spaces for outdoor activities. Through this series of transformations, the Watts Chapel expansion of the church addressed its goals while providing a new definition of what characterizes a place of worship.

The main entrance of the church campus is on Tryon Rd., a major street off of I-40 highway. A translucent glass steeple is a visual guide to direct people into the site. One of the main challenges of this project is "how to balance the huge building complex and the green space?" Because of the impervious surface required for this property. To answer this question, the design team came up with a layout with two green spaces, a memorial garden and courtyard, one public and one private. The memorial garden is an intermediate space between the Tryon road and the sanctuary serving as the public gathering space for events.

The sanctuary was designed to seat 2,000 people, providing ample space for worship. Space is divided into levels; the first level largely consists of seats and choir space and the mezzanine level which provides an additional seating area, parents room, and offices. To connect the spaces, the corridor runs around the perimeter of the sanctuary creating the transitional space between what is outside and what is inside. This corridor acts to visually and physically connect space with the sanctuary being the anchor point. The corridor also serves as a natural gathering space at intersections and a lobby for the sanctuary space.

Materiality of the building is cast stone panels, glass, and metal louvers. The first level is wrapped in transparency glass to create a feeling of floating massing. Above the glass, the second level is the mixture of cast stone and metal louvers. For areas facing east and west, daylighting is mitigated with the use of metal louvers to allow light to filter in within a controlled setting. The solid stone instances protect the spaces where light is diverted and provides privacy as well. To balance the simple tone of exterior material, the interior material is mainly plywood veneer to create a comfortable and welcoming feeling.

From its conception, the design for Watts Chapel centered around the relationship between spaces. Having direct access to natural daylighting and greenery shaped the program layout for the church. The courtyard serves to deliver natural daylighting to these spaces. It also provides an open, vegetated area where one can enjoy interacting directly with outside in the space or can be viewed from within the church.

Watts Chapel is oriented facing north, taking full advantage of natural daylighting in relation to its solar orientation. The difference in heights for specific spaces visually demonstrates the hierarchy in the program layout of the church. The largest volume in the church, the sanctuary space, contains upper-level seating, providing additional space for worship and adding a stronger vertical to space as a whole. The lobby directs church members through the center of the church respectively, giving access to both the courtyard and sanctuary. Surrounding the courtyard are classrooms and counseling rooms with direct access to natural daylighting and greenery.