HOUSTON — Morris Architects (www.morrischurches.com) Assembly Studio has announced the official formation of the Church Design Studio for church planning, according to a news release. The new group boasts experienced design specialists to address a multitude of challenges faced by today's growing churches.

"Today's churches are no longer just for Sunday worship and Bible study," said Mark V. Martof, director of Church Design Studio for Morris Architects. "Churches are multipurpose spaces that serve the many facets of Christian life. Members attend sermons on Saturday night, teenagers participate in youth programs during the week, and sometimes Sunday worship includes an orchestra performance. Community outreach is becoming a vital component of the growing congregation."

The 2004 Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches reports that 215 U.S. church bodies have a record high total membership exceeding 161 million. In response to the growing market, Morris is modifying its traditional architectural services to include broader overview of the master plan to support future growth. This rise in church growth can sometimes translate into site constraints and restrictions, location issues, logistics, communication barriers and financing considerations for many church leaders.

To address these issues, Morris has supplemented traditional architectural services to create a clear growth plan that also fulfills the mission and vision of church leaders and their congregations. In this capacity, Morris Architects acts as a church master planning consultant and brings a team of experts to the process — from fundraising, initial planning and design, to construction.

Morris works with church leaders to design for the future. Morris has been designing and building churches since the 1940s. The portfolio of current projects includes the renovation of a sports-arena for nationally televised Lakewood Church; the completion of Champion Forest Baptist Church; The Fountain of Praise Church; St.Cyril of Alexandria Catholic Church; Kingdom Builders; and Houston Baptist University.

"Today's churches, in some cases, are a lot like theaters," adds Martof. "They require state-of-the art performance capabilities that take into consideration sight lines, acoustics, flexibility, and broadcast capabilities."

Morris taps into a wide array of expertise from its work in public assembly. Portfolio projects include the Houston Hobby Center for Performing Arts, the Wortham Theater Center, Nokia Live, and the Disney Institute Amphitheater.