Plenty of Congregating

February 17, 2026

The First Congregational Church Hall Blog is back! Let us catch you up to speed on our progress. 

A fifth-year student hugs a tree on the site of the First Congregational Church Hall.
A student ties a string to a stake to test building heights.
A student is using a camera to take images on the site of the First Congregational Church.

After a restful winter break, we hit the ground running and consulted Mary Margaret Jones with Hargreaves Jones for advice on landscape designs iterated before the new year. Mary Margaret provided valuable insight into the expected circulation of visitors and their interaction with the proposed courtyard schemes. After the meeting, we reanalyzed the role a courtyard plays in connecting the two buildings! 

Three fifth year students work at their desks in studio.

After “Neckdown” Week, our team worked hard to produce renderings of key perspectives throughout the project. Perspectives included an approach to the new building from the door of the church, as well as an approach from the current parking lot. We created renderings for the two main schemes at play: a parallel oriented building and a perpendicularly oriented building. We showcased these views in a critical meeting with the client. Our client’s insights gave us much-needed direction. After the meeting, we decided to continue only with the parallel orientation. 

A pin-up of perspective courtyard drawings and building sections.
Two fifth year students present to their client while using a physical model.
Two students work at their desks in studio, one is using a 3D modeling software and the other is drawing.

Kiel Moe, Professor of Practice of Architecture at Auburn University and practicing architect, stopped in to see the progression of the Timber Insulation Pods, two new student housing pods at Morrisette House. During his time in Hale County, he provided valuable critique of the First Congregational Church Hall. Each team member produced color pencil–rendered elevation drawings to develop ideas for the building cladding. 

A student is coloring in a plan drawing of the First Congregational Church Hall project.
A fifth year student presents the First Congregational Church Hall project to Kiel Moe.
A student draws mechanical systems on a plan for the First Congregational Church Hall.

As we were digging more thoroughly into the design of the building, we found ourselves at a good place for review with Hank Koning and Julie Eizenberg, both founding partners and principal architects of Koning Eizenberg Architecture. They ran a workshop where they helped us reimagine what was possible with the interior of the First Congregational Church Hall itself. Hank and Julie have taught us to pair our future design iterations against the scenarios of events and circumstances that are important to the congregation! 

Two fifth-year students present to Hank Koning and Julie Eizenberg.
Occupational, plan studies lay strewn out over a desk.
Two fifth year students work with Hank Koning at a desk during a workshop.

That’s all from the team this time, we can’t wait to see you in the next blog!

The members of the First Congregational Church Hall Team are photoshopped onto a image of the Penguins of Madagascar.