It's been a roller coaster year or so for the First Presbyterian Church of Encino.
Its sanctuary reopened its doors in December 2002 after an $800,000, nine-month renovation. But only four months later, an arson fire gutted another part of the church.
Now the hard work of remodeling and then rebuilding after the fire is paying off. The architects and the church are receiving local and national design awards for the sanctuary's new light-filled and more inviting look. And the leaders of First Presbyterian are optimistic about attracting new members.
Associate Pastor Janelle Tibbetts said the congregation had been "pretty beaten up" by the fire but "realizes that we can do anything we put our mind to." Including spending about $800,000 on remodeling the sanctuary's interior.
When the head pastor, Malcolm Laing, came to the Encino church in 1996, he saw that membership was dwindling. "We had a large number of visitors my first three years who came once and didn't come back," Laing said.
He attributed that to the gloomy sanctuary. "The low ceilings and the dark lighting -- regardless of what we did -- set a low tone, almost as if [people] were going to a funeral," Laing said.
Over a three-year period, the congregation pledged and donated more than $1 million to fix up First Presbyterian.
The church hired Abramson Teiger Architects, and that firm could see the challenge.
"It lacked any light and any spirit in the building," architect Trevor Abramson said. "The congregation was aging with the building, and they wanted to literally breathe some new light into it."
Abramson had the idea of installing curved arches in sculptural forms inspired by images of cupped hands in prayer in medieval paintings. The space went from having almost no light to being flooded with it: Sixteen skylights and theater lighting reflect off the white Venetian plaster that replaced the dark oak paneling.
To create a more intimate worship space, the shape of the pews and the location of the chancel were rearranged. The pews, which originally were linear and faced forward, are now in a curved design. The chancel, instead of being with the choir in a stage setting, is now closer to the congregation. And there is no clergy seating; the pastors sit in the pews.
For those changes, the American Institute of Architects gave Abramson Teiger an Institute Honor Award, which the firm will receive in June. The institute's California Council gave the firm the Honor Award of Design Excellence in May. The Los Angeles Business Council also gave the firm an award.
