First United Methodist

This project is an adaptive reuse, turning the existing Bekins Moving and Storage Warehouse building into a new church facility. The scope of work included the complete structural retrofit of the existing (circa 1930-1950) concrete structures and the opening up of the interior. Change-of-use requirements necessitated a life safety seismic retrofit, accomplished with the addition of concrete shear walls located at strategic locations to minimize the impact to the space. A new stair core on the east elevation of the building was utilized for the main seismic buttress. As part of the space conversion, a large portion of the second level in the sanctuary space was removed to create a two-story volume. The perimeter of the opening was located to reduce the demand on the existing two-way slab and minimize the amount of steel framing to support the new slab edge.