Some of the 16 clusters of ceiling tile in the new Worship Center/Gym designed to not only hold lighting but improve sound.

Sometime in June, the new Worship Center/Gym opens and ushers in Triad’s first change in worship location since November 2002.

Members will leave behind a 12,000-square-foot sanctuary for a 44,000-square-foot building that houses a gym, the church’s first commercial kitchen, eight classrooms (seven available for Sunday School use), a new Welcome Center, Media Center, and much more.

The facility, used by both the church and Triad Baptist Christian Academy, represents the continuation of Triad’s multi-use philosophy.

Worship Director Scott Compton said there’s quite a bit more to the new space than meets the eye. What can you expect on move-in day?

Compton gives these highlights (we’ll address the new Sunday School locations in a future Connections article):

• New service and Sunday School schedule. Triad will move from its three-service and Sunday School format to two services and associated Sunday Schools. The new service times: 9 a.m. (contemporary) and 10:30 a.m. (traditional).
  
  
• Computer-designed space. Just like NASCAR teams design cars, sound technicians used computer-aided design programs to optimize the computer-operated sound, lights and video system. The lights in the ceiling are arrayed in 16 different clusters of ceiling tile to address the acoustical challenges that come with “box-type” rooms, and all the walls feature sound-absorbing geometric panels. Said Compton, “The entire room was actually modeled on a computer that determined what treatment to use and how to design the sound system.”
  
  
• Chairs. Put out on Saturday night and put back into storage on Sunday evening, Triad will start with 800 chairs for each service (the gym floor holds 1,200). They’ll be arranged in four sections with the middle two facing forward and those on either side slanted in. (Two local churches are considering taking the pews in the current sanctuary.)
  
  
• Video screens. Because it would be labor intensive and create so much wear and tear to distribute and collect hymnals with the chairs as they are set up and removed to storage each week, hymnals will not be used in the new space for the traditional service. (We’re checking into donating our hymnals to some of our missionaries, mission agencies or church plants.) The words of hymns, choruses and other music as well as a live video feed will be displayed on the large video screens for both services.
  
  
• Parking. There will be designated senior parking on Sunday mornings around the Worship Center/Gym and on Wednesday evenings seniors will use the lot that is currently designated for Sunday morning senior parking in front of the covered canopy entrance to the campus. Compton said, “For others, parking preferences may be affected if they have younger children or by Sunday School class location.”
  
  
• Theatrical stage. The front of the Worship Center/Gym is a true stage—with curtains and every other element needed for TBC musicals, community and other productions. Vacation Bible School will remain in the old sanctuary, which is being rebranded as the Kids Street Worship Center. Said Compton, “This allows the VBS set team to start setup earlier, and the space will already be renovated with children in mind.”
  
  
• New lobby and Welcome Center in the round. With more than twice the space of the current foyer and more entrances and exits, the lobby of the Worship Center/Gym makes it much more comfortable for people to gather before and after services. The lobby features a large round Welcome Center in the center. For the first time, information about all of Triad’s ministries and visitor information — staffed by Triad’s greeters — will be housed there. The new lobby is large enough that there’s also room in one corner for Triad’s first Media/Tech Center, which will feature computers, books and other resources.
  
  
• Triad’s first commercial kitchen. Instead of catering meals for large events, the commercial kitchen will allow the church to prepare its own food. The kitchen is equipped with commercial refrigerators and walk-in freezers as well as a large storage area for dry foods, canned foods and other supplies and commercial-grade ovens and other equipment.