Designs for Worship: Traditional Faith Architecture
OUR LADY OF THE LAKE CATHOLIC CHURCH CHAPIN, SC
excellence since1963
LS3P is an architecture, interiors, and planning firm celebrating more than 60 years of design excellence. LS3P operates from its 12 offices in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, providing its clients the expertise and resources of a large firm with the local knowledge and personal connections of a small firm. We are deeply committed to the communities we serve, with over 680 design awards in diverse practice areas.
At our core, we are a design firm, dedicated to contributing our best to our projects, our clients, and each other with integrity and passion. Our significant portfolio of traditional church designs is rooted in the heritage, values, and beliefs which make each faith community unique. Using classic architectural details and established forms, we are highly skilled at creating spaces which are welcoming, familiar, and enduring. Nationally, we have completed over 400 faith-based projects, and we are honored by the trust our faith clients have placed in our proven process, our commitment to design excellence, and most importantly, our client relationships.
400+ Designs for Worship Experiences
680+ Awards for Design Excellence
Holy Trinity Anglican Church
RALEIGH, NC
Located in downtown Raleigh, this 500-seat sanctuary building stands just five blocks north of the State Capitol building. The colonial-style church is the first permanent home for the new congregation, and provides 25,000 SF of worship, fellowship, and education space. Though it is all new construction, this church building is intended to look as if it has existed in the heart of Raleigh for a hundred years.
The sanctuary features a second-level choir and balcony with an organ. An intimate 50-seat chapel is located in the second level of the tower, and the steeple spire extends 130 feet above street level. A connector building provides fellowship space while bridging the sanctuary and a two-story education building. The education building provides space for both children and adults, and frames a courtyard gathering space between the two main buildings.
Catholic Diocese of Charleston Chancery
CHARLESTON, SC
The Chancery, a new administrative building for the Diocese of Charleston, consolidates programs previously housed in four separate buildings. The campus, which fits snugly beneath canopies of oak trees, also includes a chapel and meeting hall.
The design team visited a number of chanceries throughout the Southeast to gain inspiration, gather programming information, and confirm space adjacencies for the various departments.
The buildings were oriented to achieve maximum energy conservation while maintaining natural light and views for every office. The design balances the open offices and the welcoming nature of the campus with a need for security and privacy. The exterior of the buildings features materials representing the entire state of South Carolina with brick from the Midlands, stone from the Upstate, and siding from the Lowcountry.
SIMPSONVILLE, SC
Calvary Baptist Church
This 2-story addition contains a 1,450-seat sanctuary with balcony, lobby/gathering space, classrooms, and support spaces. The seating is arranged in a fan-shaped layout which minimizes sightline distances and preserves the intimacy of the original sanctuary. The baptistry is located to the side of the platform to accommodate a central projection screen. The lobby encourages fellowship before and after services and also can be used for gatherings. A new steeple tower contains one of the balcony stairs and serves to mark the church’s location within the community.
The new facility is designed to be flexible, serve multiple uses, and allow space for future expansion.
WALHALLA, SC
Walhalla Presbyterian Church
This multiphase project for Walhalla Presbyterian Church restored a historic 1915 church gutted by a fire which left only the exterior sanctuary walls standing. While undertaking the restoration, the congregation wanted to preserve the feel of the original space while updating the facilities for the future.
The unusual original church design had the exterior appearance of a Greek cross with two porticos and a dome, but the interior “L” shaped plan featured fan seating oriented to one corner. The new design enlarges the platform area to better accommodate the choir and pulpit, and converts the previous choir loft into space for a future pipe organ.
Several classrooms were removed in order to enlarge the platform area. This strategy also exposed the existing stained glass windows which survived the fire, which are now in full view of the sanctuary. The restoration rebuilt and reconfigured the balcony to provide better sightlines and acoustics. New interior columns, a new copper dome, and a refurbished portico recall the church’s architectural history. A central gathering space/lobby provides a new welcome center and elevator to connect all three levels.
St. Luke United Methodist Church
WALHALLA, SC
On the first anniversary of the fire that destroyed their historic sanctuary, St. Luke United Methodist Church opened its doors to a new 200-seat sanctuary.
The sanctuary features a bell tower that displays the bell and cross from the original sanctuary, providing a landmark to the community. The project relocated the parsonage to a more appropriate location to allow the new sanctuary to be the focal point of the site. The sanctuary was designed with exposed glulam trusses, stained wood paneling behind the altar, and a balcony that also contains the AV control area.
The original stained glass windows were framed and re-hung inside new sanctuary windows. The design recalls the historic nature and intimate feeling of the original building while providing improved lighting, circulation, restrooms and other elements.
ASHEVILLE, NC
Chatlos Memorial Chapel
With mountain views from the chapel through the forest canopy, the building is boldly located perpendicular to the sloping terrain on a 3,500-acre site defined by two major ridgelines. The steeple soars 80 feet above the roofline to provide a strong visual symbol day and night.
Two additional floors are hidden below the sanctuary level. The middle floor is multi-functional for receptions and meetings, and the basement level incorporates a stepped-floor auditorium for conferences. All parking is remotely located, so visitors must walk a defined path system through the woods to reach this secluded worship center.
Building materials are native to the region. Exterior wall surfaces are North Carolina field stone, gathered on site and laid in a “dry” fashion reminiscent of traditional mountain masonry. Roofing material is slate, and the chapel floor surface is heart pine. Detailing is simple and articulate to exhibit the talents of local craftsman.
St. Michael Catholic Church
MURRELLS INLET, SC
This design provides a new worship space for one of the largest parishes in South Carolina, which has outgrown its former facilities. The new 22,000 SF church includes a 1,200 seat nave, two sacristies, an adoration chapel, a bride room/cry room, a repast kitchen, and a gift shop.
The architectural solution cultivates the spiritual development of the parish community with a collection of sacred relics curated by the parish’s spiritual leader. The result is a clear liturgical message encouraging the community’s full, conscious, and active participation in the liturgy.
The master plan redevelops a portion of the site to include a new church, an entry plaza, a columbarium, and 400 parking spaces to support the existing Parish Life Center and school. The reorganized site improves safety and visibility while preserving treasured site features.
Holy Spirit Evangelical Lutheran Church
CHARLESTON, SC
This classical church in a Lowcountry style was formed from the merger of two Charleston, SC congregations. The design of the exterior was inspired by famous churches in the Holy City, while the clean, light interior serves as both worship space and gallery for unique church artifacts. Numerous pieces of historic furniture were brought from the St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church building, with priceless antique church furniture including the altar, baptismal font, lectern, reading desks, chancel chair, and piano. The church also has a broad collection of colorful banners and linens, and a restored organ from a historic church in Chicago.
The church wanted the space to be worshipful, peaceful, reverent, simple, beautiful, and flooded with natural light. Case study exercises included a wide survey of traditional churches, potential treatments for the sanctuary ceiling, and various types of steeples. The resulting design is classic, with an elliptical barrel vault ceiling flowing seamlessly down into the walls and pilasters of the nave. A series of scallops over the tall arched windows of the nave created a series of smaller barrels which intersect with the main barrel vault.
GREENVILLE, SC
Brushy Creek Baptist Church
This extensive renovation provides a much-needed gathering space within an expansive new lobby for a historic congregation, originally founded in 1794. The existing lobby was constrained and was not conducive to fellowship before and after worship services; the new space is welcoming, engaging, and spacious. A new reception area, coffee bar, and lounge with informal seating all encourage informal interactions and strengthen opportunities for engagement.
Prior to the renovation, the façade projected an uninspiring aesthetic. The new design clearly communicates a “church” aesthetic with an inviting new façade and large-scale cross that welcomes the congregation into its new space. The renovation also improved circulation with the addition of a new stairwell and elevator. Exposed custom wood trusses designed for the lobby roof support a clerestory which draws the eye upwards and brings natural light into the space below.
Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church CHAPIN, SC
The design for this new church building celebrates eight historically significant stained glass windows acquired from a convent in New Jersey. The sanctuary accommodates 650 people, and is designed for future expansion to 1000.
The narthex, support spaces, and steeple are also designed for ease of expansion as the congregation grows and the transepts are extended.
The site is master planned to include future education buildings and a cloister walkway to connect the campus buildings. Other church spaces include the narthex, choir balcony, Adoration Chapel, cry room/bride’s room, sacristy, vesting room, and other support spaces.
New pews were installed in the nave as part of the project. In some parts of the building, cabinetry and other millwork were built by a church member from repurposed existing pews. Other existing pews from the nave were re-built to fit the new transepts.
