“How can historic sacred places support civic engagement, social cohesion, and neighborhood equity?” That is the question asked by the Community Design Collaboration and Partners for Sacred Places and recently addressed by The Atlantic’s Emma Green, who examined the value that religious groups add to a neighborhood. Essentially, if a religious ... More
When renowned church architect Henry J. Schlacks applied classical models from Italy into his design of the Shrine of Christ the King church (historically known as St. Clara/St. Gelasius) on the south side of Chicago, he could not anticipate the church burning like a Roman candle. Unfortunately on the morning of October 7th, 2015 during ... More
Founded in 1986, New Life is a non-denominational Christian church with over 20 Chicago-land locations and 7,000 members. Their mission is to reach and teach 30,000 people throughout Chicago-land, through life-giving communities of faith that serve as transformation centers to the neighborhoods where they are located. At their 85,000 sf. Midway ... More
The church bells rang out (metaphorically) on November 2nd as Partners for Sacred Places and the National Trust for Historic Preservation announced an unprecedented $14 million National Fund for Sacred Places to assist houses of worship in need of repair and restoration. Bailey Edward’s Robin Whitehurst, AIA, who serves as a board member for ... More
Bailey Edward’s own Robin Whitehurst was appointed as a Director to the Board for Partners for Sacred Places (PSP). Per PSP’s website, “Partners is the only national advocate for the sound stewardship and active community use of America’s older religious properties. Through our training programs, information clearinghouse, and professional network, ... More
Dating back to 1924, Bailey Edward has had a presence on the Champaign architecture scene. The firm’s origins stem from Berger and Kelley Associates, proceeding through the century as Unteed Associates; Unteed, Scaggs, Nelson; Unteed, Nelson, Slack, Anderson and Architectural Planning Consultants before becoming Bailey Edward in 2001. The final ... More
Bailey Edward Principals, Ellen Dickson and Robin Whitehurst, decided this was the year to follow client feedback and add mechanical, electrical and plumbing services. Ellen and Robin approached Kent Locke, Principal of Fox Valley Engineers for 20+ years, with the idea of spring-boarding a decade of collaboration into added value to our community, ... More
Architectural design competitions are an opportunity for emerging design professionals to research and learn about current social and economic trends. The challenge comes in using that intelligence to articulate the role architecture can play in a solution. Design competitions provide an opportunity where the designer is free to explore and craft ... More
Bailey Edward and Partners for Sacred Places hosted their first annual conference focused on providing congregations with a crash course on how to best leverage houses of worship to maximize community impact. With over 150 attendees at the free one-day event, faith leaders had the opportunity to network with local leaders in preservation, community ... More
If you are a faith leader at a house of worship that serves your community,
If you are a lay leader or volunteer at a congregation that is committed to service, justice and peace,
If you are interested in the role that sacred places play in revitalizing neighborhoods and helping those in need,
If you want to network with foundation program officers, ... More
AIA Chicago's HRC and IFRAA hosted a Historic Restoration & Renovation Tour of First United Methodist Church yesterday. The tour, lead by Bailey Edward Principal, Robin Whitehurst, and Historic Preservation Leader, Susan Turner, highlighted the restoration and renovation of the Sanctuary and Pierce Hall spaces within the 27-story 1927 Chicago ... More
Join the Glenview Ismaili Jamatkhana and Chicago IFRAA Knowledge Community for a lecture and tour of the new facility, led by Ellen Bailey Dickson, President of Bailey Edward.
The Jamatkhana’s design reflects the group’s belief that esoteric knowledge is communicated by the Imam (prayer leader) to the Jamat (community) through numerical symbolism ... More