W.S. Cumby recently served as Construction Manager for a renovation and new construction project at Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church. The project included the construction of a new, modern addition as well as renovations to the Ministries Center, gymnasium and the beloved Congregational Hall.

The addition, nicknamed “the Link”, is a modern atrium structure, which connects the Sanctuary building and Ministries Center, and creates a centralized access point to both buildings from the front driveway and the rear parking area of the church. Design and construction of the building faced a number of unique challenges, including the difference in grade between the front driveway and rear parking lot, the slight difference in the height of the existing entrances to both the Sanctuary and Ministries Center and the compact footprint between the Sanctuary and Ministries Center, both of which would remain in-use throughout construction. Another major challenge was the need for chilled water and heating piping to run between the two buildings which was accomplished by adding a crawlspace to house these pipes.

The glass and steel structure features 8 foot tall entrance doors on both the north and south sides of the building, each topped with engraved cast stone signs. The interior of the Link features Pennsylvania bluestone flooring throughout, a 9 Wood ceiling and a large central skylight as well as floor to ceiling windows, offering abundant natural light.

On the north side (parking lot side) of the Link a new exterior stairway and accessibility ramp were added leading to the double doors. Due to the compact site plan, a new double-sided elevator was installed to provide access to the lower and upper levels of the Link with doors opening out into two different directions. A bluestone and glass staircase was also added leading to the upper level of the Link. Because the Sanctuary and Ministries Center entrances are at two slightly different heights, the floor of the Link between the two was constructed at a slight sloping grade to provide a smooth flooring area and avoid the addition of unnecessary steps that could interfere with building accessibility