ORO Editions

Ecclesiastical Enhancement

SAINT MARK'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH, CAPITOL HILL

For this 1920s parish hall annex to St. Mark’s, a neo-Romanesque church from the late 1800s located just steps from the Library of Congress, taking on any renovation would require extreme care. The hall presented its own significance, designed by local Washington, D.C., architect Delos H. Smith, who specialized in ecclesiastical structures. The church wanted to triple the building’s usable space. Its historic designation, however, required U.S. Commission of Fine Arts approval, which limited exterior alterations. Expansion had to happen within the building’s L-shaped footprint and without damaging the adjacent courtyard or affecting the working church.