In the WFX Atlanta 2012 issue of WFM, soon to hit your mailbox, you may sense a building momentum. Not necessarily the momentum of pre-2008, but a new kind of smarter, more street-savvy forward movement.
Our feature project in that issue begins on page 16 and details the design expansion of Atlanta-area Ignatius House Retreat Center on the banks of the Chattahoochee River. Design expansion and working with what you've got—nurturing and freshening it for more relevant ministry—is a theme echoed by our 2012 Reader Survey respondents. Thirty-three percent of you reported this year that you're looking for ways to maximize existing space. That may mean that, like Ignatius House, you're working on your current campus to build out part of an existing master plan.
Or it may mean you're simply looking for ways to reinvigorate a somewhat worn youth area in your church. In this year's Reader Survey, 55% of you reported that youth facilities figure into your current or contemplated construction plans. You'll find ideas for these spaces on page 20 of the WFX Atlanta 2012 issue, and you may learn that focusing on timeless comfort and hang-out space is as effective as buying all the latest bells and whistles in video games.
Maybe your momentum is in the form of looking for new space for your main ministry or for a multi-site extension. Street smarts and favorable economic factors can combine to offer a number of potential sites at appreciable savings—if you know what to look for and the potential pitfalls to avoid. If this is your need, your story is “Site Selection Smarts for Pastors” (page 24).
According to the Reader Survey, another item on your hot-button list may be the purchase of audio systems. A full 65% of you reported that of all the AVL products and services you're likely to seek out within the next year, audio systems top that list. Take note of page 30 in the WFX issue, “The Pastor's Guide to Microphone Selection.”
And finally, a recurring request for editorial coverage appears in your 2012 Reader Survey remarks: you want to hear more, see more, experience more coverage on small churches in 2013. WFM staff is listening, and we want to talk with you. Come visit us at Booth #1019 on the show floor—we want to hear more and to help you find the answers that you seek. Not attending WFX? Email us at editorial@worshipfacilities.com.
