Completed Gathering Space Renovation
The Beginning
In the summer of 2011, the core group of about 25 adults and a handful of children who would start Missio Dei Church outgrew my living room and a local West Side coffee shop. We moved into Essex Studios intentionally in order to participate in one of Cincinnati’s arts communities believing it to have theological and strategic importance. The Church and the Arts have historically had a symbiotic relationship that has atrophied over the centuries. My belief is that artists tell the story of our culture and I’m hopeful that the story of Jesus will make it back into the story of our culture.
Over the first few months, we gathered every other week for prayer, bible teaching, singing, and communion as fuel for a life sent as God’s people back to the people in our city. Our group grew rapidly when 40 people from a church that had been gathering on campus at the University of Cincinnati joined us. We spent the summer getting to know one another and making new friends so that by the end of the season, we committed to gathering weekly together.
As the Fall rolled in, our group was growing rapidly and we began looking for another studio within Essex to accommodate our small church. I learned that the American Sign Museum was going to relocate across town and that the studio at the entry of the building would be available. That studio required renovations, most of which were done by members in the church and me. The vision behind the renovation was the creation of a listening room venue for music and story-telling. We would host small concerts and poetry nights in a space that could be utilized for worship on Sundays. On Easter Sunday, 2012, we held our first gathering in the studio that would be our primary worship space for the next 10 years. Our kids ministry moved into our old studio and we rented another small studio for our babies.
Growth and Multiplication
By 2014, there was a need for a more accommodating children’s discipleship center and we took over the large warehouse studio that was next to our gathering studio. It had previously belonged to the Cincinnati Circus and there was a lot that had to be done to make it kid-friendly and safe. This was the first renovation that included the use of subcontractors to frame, hang drywall, and add appropriate electrical service. My labor was limited to adding windows, installing trim, painting, and furnishing.
All the while, the church continued to grow and we began to talk more seriously about multiplication. In 2016, our elders pressed me to make a decision about finding a new building or staying in Essex. Believing that we still had relational work to do at Essex, I communicated the desire to stay put and pray about renovation. We developed a multi-phase plan to renovate the entrance, lobby, and restrooms in the first phase, build a new kids discipleship area as the second phase, and enlarge the gathering space as the final phase.
The lobby renovation was extensive as we ripped out the old asphalt flooring in order to pour new concrete. Along with all new bathrooms, new lighting and glass doors were installed as well as feature areas in the lobby (i.e. the fireplace, the welcome desk, the cafe, the art galleries, and the couch nook). Many of the finishes were completed by artists in the building and it helped share the vision of creating communal space to continue strengthening those friendships. I learned during this phase that our building was not zoned for a church and it took months to work with the city and make additional renovations to rezone the building.
2017 was spent sending our first church plant out and trying to finalize plans for a new kids space. We had to wait for a particular studio to come available and to begin renovations. The remodel of this space hit considerable obstacles including suspect subcontractors, safety sprinkler relocation, and HVAC airflow requirements that were difficult to accomplish without engineered drawings. By the end of 2018, we hired Rhett Harkins from RDM Contractors to complete the work. His focus and resources were a significant blessing. As we were about to complete the construction, Covid hit and put the world on pause for roughly a year. By 2021, however, we were able to open our kids' discipleship space and look toward the final phase.
Adjustments and Completion
In the first few months of utilizing the new kids’ space, we realized that the Essex infrastructure might not be able to accommodate the plans we had for our dream gathering space. We recognized our need for more space for grade school and student ministry and already had the largest footprint in the building. At some point, continued expansion for Missio in Essex would negatively impact the arts community. So in the middle of contractor bids, we asked the architect to help us plan for a 300 seat auditorium rather than the original plan of 425 seats. As we awaited planning, contractor bids, and permit submissions, we snuck in a renovation of our offices and added a sensory room in our old kids’ space.
Phase three began in September of 2023 and we had to relocate off-site for roughly three months during construction. As we returned to a new space, we took several weeks to consecrate and give thanks to all that God had provided for us. There is one more small renovation for our grade school and student ministry that will complete the work that we will do at Essex. This facility should serve us as a congregation for the next 8-10 years unless the Lord causes significant numeric increase. We were able to hold our annual “Eve of the Eve” Hymn Sing at Essex for the first time in years and will host a grand re-opening of our worship studio on Jan. 7, 2024 at 10a.
Our worship space is a testament to the Gospel that we preach. Jesus is the great restorer. I am excited once again to host musical artists and story-tellers as well as to host visual art openings in our galleries a few times each year. It is a joy to see the vision that God placed on my heart so many years ago come to fruition. Maybe this will be one of the stories some of our artists will tell.
Submitted by: Kurt Hannah