Vineyard City Church: Building Design and Campus Master Plan

Abstract

While I have been at the University of Arizona, the three areas of study I have been most involved in are Architecture, Communication, and Religion. I started attending church for the first time my freshman year at Vineyard City Church in Tucson. As I attended the church, I began to see how the space itself was a large factor not only in the functionality of the church, but in what is communicated about religion, God and the mission of the church itself. It also plays a big role in the structure of the services, activities, and the relationship to the greater Tucson community. Pastor Gary Stokes took over Vineyard City Church about six years ago, when it had a dwindling congregation of about eighteen people. Under new administration, the church stabilized and became highly diverse. It began to grow as a result. When their current home, the former YMCA building was sold and demolished, they were forced to become a load in-load out church based out of mobile minis during the week and Blenman Elementary School on Sunday mornings. As the church grows to a congregation of about 120, it is clear that the building is no longer meeting several functional, relational, and expressional goals. As ministries launch, there is no anchor for the congregation and very little visibility in the community. Since a church building is essentially a tool to minister to the community, a permanent space would allow them to better fulfill their mission statement of showing Jesus' love in word AND deed. The end product of my capstone research and development will be a general master plan and complete building design for Vineyard City Church. The project will ultimately be a balance of religious demonstration, functional necessity, aesthetic attractiveness, social facilitation, and financial consideration so the design is attractive and attainable.