FAITH + COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP
Divine timing ( and much more )
By thinking outside the box , West End Church created a unique opportunity to expand into a rapidly growing , otherwise cost-prohibitive area of Houston .
By RaeAnn Slaybaugh
For many churches , landlock and exorbitant property prices are all-too-common hurdles — especially in rapid-growth areas like Houston . Luckily , these proved to be surmountable for River Pointe Church .
Beginning in 2015 , the decision to merge RPC with a struggling church in the West End area did more than just create a permanent home ; it created unparalleled faith + community partnership and expansion opportunities .
Enter West End Baptist Church , a 109-year-old congregation which owned the entire block , including a 1,000-seat worship center ; a threestory , 1930s-era building , and a circa-1960s educational center . Sadly , the church had dwindled to fewer than 20 congregants in recent years . Senior Pastor Patrick Kelley and his team realized the impact that starting a campus in the area could have . At the same time , West End Baptist was facing a timeline from the city to meet building safety standards . Though church leaders were unable to do so financially , they had a multimillion-dollar offer from a developer on the table . That entity intended to build a high-rise apartment complex on the site . “ I told [ them ] I could make them a better offer : if they would merge with [ us ] and give us the property and buildings , then we would invest in the space and keep it as a church in the neighborhood ,” Kelley recalls . “ It was divine timing .” West End leaders voted unanimously to merge with RPC . No doubt it was clear from the outset that preserving the church ’ s legacy was of utmost importance to both churches , beginning with the name . “ We wanted to keep the West End name because they had been in the location since 1930 ,” Kelley explains . “ However , we ’ re not a Baptist church , so we dropped that part .” West End Baptist ’ s interim pastor was given a three-year salary guarantee . RPC leaders promised to bring the buildings up to code and return the worship center to working order . So began a major renovation project to preserve the space and meet the City ’ s requirements . For this , Kelley turned to the RPC ’ s architect of choice for several new-build projects : Houston-based
Studio RED . “ Their enthusiasm for refurbishing rather than a teardown-and-rebuild gave great energy to the project ,” Kelley says . “ Their expertise and the way they took care of every detail gave us great confidence as we began to uncover surprise after surprise in the remodel .”
A classic space with contemporary functionality The project began with the worship space , where West End Church embarked on a $ 6-million-plus renovation . The lobby was enlarged , public restrooms were installed , a courtyard was created , and the office was renovated . All electrical , plumbing and mechanical systems were replaced , and state-of-the-art sound , lighting and video systems were installed . Phase One also included renovating the first floor of the 1960s children ’ s building .
Coffee brings people together Next came the 1930s-era building on the campus — the original children ’ s Sunday School building built for $ 8,000 . Kelley says he and his team knew it would be a costly project , regardless of what the building became . As such , they had their eye on a space that would extend beyond the church . “ We believed that a coffee house , if successful , would provide resources to invest back into the community to fight homelessness and sex trafficking and to help with education in underserved areas of Houston ,” he explains . “ And the building has so much history , as well as classic architecture and building materials that we believed we could bring it back to life .” To realize this ambitious vision , Kelley again called
on Studio RED . Today , The Coffee House at West End is a three-story café and venue space that is open to the public all week long . It features a unique rooftop deck with amazing skyline views of Houston and has the most available parking of any coffee shop in Houston — an excellent selling point for special events and church gatherings .
26 CHURCH EXECUTIVE | MAR / APR 2022