Harvest/Evangelical Formosan Church

orchid
After years of searching for a viable site for their new home, Harvest/Evangelical Formosan Church found this narrow sliver of property on the edge of the San Dieguito River Park. Church representatives and the design team entered into extensive interaction with the Carmel Valley Planning Group, the San Dieguito River Park representatives as well as the Coastal Commission. Design, colors, materials and landscaping were thoroughly reviewed and vetted in numerous meetings by these agencies and the interested public. The recently completed first phase includes the social hall, classrooms, children’s play area and administrative offices. The second phase Sanctuary, complete with a tower and cross, will provide the southern border to the outdoor social space. This outdoor plaza offers views to the west across the river park and out to the ocean. The low profile buildings, pitched roofs and muted colors respond to the guidelines developed for the area. Operable windows throughout the facility capture the breezes mitigating the need for air conditioning. A large bay window oriented to the northwest and exterior balcony in the Social Hall offers beautiful views and natural light while multiple doors open onto the widely used plaza. Sunday school classrooms are protected by broad overhangs and offer the congregants Bible classes in rooms that have distant views and natural light and air. The facility also provides multiple uses for the congregants including a serving kitchen that provides treats after the worship services, a library, and an administrative complex. The landscape palette and locations were designed in collaboration with community representatives and include Torrey Pines, California Sycamores, Cottonwoods and other native plantings which are part of the design team’s approach to a regionally appropriate landscape solution.
Project Information
Project Address: 
13885 El Camino Real, San Diego, CA 92130
Project Owner/ Developer: 
Harvest/Evangelical Church of San Diego
Owner Contact Name/ Email: 
Senior Pastor Kuo Liang Lin / pastorlin@harvestsd.com
Project Architect/ Designer: 
AVRP Studios
Image
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EFC_socialhall.jpg
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EFC_socialhallcanopy.jpg
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Comments:

From my perspective the

Submitted by Architecture Newbie on Sat, 09/10/2011 - 02:49.
From my perspective the buildings looks really nice. Colors blend in to the surroundings. There are lots of beautiful lines. When I've driven by, it doesn't appear to be an eyesore. In the evening, the lights accent the architecture, and does not seem tacky. I don't know much about architecture, but I just think the building looks nice.

These photos may not reveal

Submitted by NH on Wed, 08/31/2011 - 22:24.
These photos may not reveal a lot of context, but they don't misrepresent the property either. Even in the somewhat fuzzy photo at the Onion nomination page (referenced by Anonymous, below), the property doesn't look bad. It's an understated property that really looks quite nice in person.

Still Smells Like an Onion!

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 08/30/2011 - 23:51.
Very clever to hide behind the smoke and mirrors of the photographer. Anything can be made seductive when filtered and framed by the eye of the manipulator. The original posting of the onion entry actually shows how the building looks in elevation-not nearly as sexy as the composed shots above. Shame on the person posting this as an orchid. These are isolated shotes that hide context. Truly a controversial project in terms of the community's opposition, and it's proximity to the San Dieguito River Valley. Any further expansion would be shameful. It's such a visual obstruction to the flow of traffic, that the city had to install a traffic light to mitigate the typical speeds of El Camino Real (I only hope the community didn't have to pay for it). When you drive by it, the truth of the design really comes through. It looks like another ugly project that Frisco White helped push through.