St. Mark's Episcopal Church
Marco Island, Florida


The additions were constructed with laminated wood arches and solid wood roof decks, matching the original construction. All of the existing finishes, equipment, roofing materials, windows, doors, and light fixtures were removed for the renovation. Only the foundations, walls, arches, roof deck, and pulpit remain from the original building.

The pulpit was saved, cleaned, and relocated to its present position. The Altar Table and related built-in furnishings were custom designed by the Architect in a similar rail & stile panel configuration, then finished to match the pulpit. The Choir is located on a stepped platform behind the Altar, where the organ and music director are recessed and screened from view from the congregation by the retable. All of the interior design including furnishing and color selections were a collaboration between the Architect, Pastor, and the Building Committee.

The large windows above the Altar face due north for excellent lighting inside, and provide a prominent facade element towards the main street outside. The sill of the Altar windows was raised to hide the view of buildings across the street, and of traffic on North Collier Blvd., the busy Main Street of Marco Island.

The visual focus of the Church is the Altar, reinforced with architectural elements intended emphasize perspective lines. The palette of colors and materials was limited to natural oak on the trim and pews, traditional white painted trim at the communion rail, pew ends, pulpit, and arches, whitewashed finish on the wood ceiling, and dark green colors on the tile floor, carpet, and fabric covered cushions.

The Architectural design is further reinforced by a determined effort to eliminate unnecessary distractions. The interior features of the Church related to lighting and air conditioning were designed to be as "invisible" as possible. The light fixtures used in the Nave provide indirect light, which is reflected off the ceiling and walls. The energy efficient quartz lamps are hidden in white wall-sconce fixtures, completely concealing the lamp and glare from the congregation. The fixtures are double-switched to allow normal or very-bright lighting levels without the need for expensive dimmer controls. Two energy-efficient multi-stage 10-ton Carrier HVAC serve the main Nave space, and two 5-ton units serve the Chapel, Library, and Choir Room zones.

The existing conditions built into the original structure made the retrofit of a proper HVAC system a very difficult task. The ductwork serving the main Nave is hidden in an exterior soffit, to minimize the visual and audible impact of the retrofit system. Linear diffusers were used in the Nave and Altar areas, selected for their clean lines and unobtrusive appearance. Externally insulated sheet metal ductwork was used at these locations. Multiples turns were planned into the return-air ducts to minimize audible noise, esp. near the main Altar. Interior condenser equipment is located inside closets that were insulated and gasketed for sound control.

Exterior equipment is gathered in a service area located away from the main entrance and Nave windows, completely screened from view. New windows are simple commercial grade white color aluminum frame units, suitable for stained-glass panels to be installed at a later time. All new doors are solid oak units in painted white galvanized steel frames. All base board trim is solid oak, stained to match the cap trim on the pews.

St. Mark's Episcopal Church Library
Marco Island, Florida


Credits:

Rev. Michael P. Durning and the Vestry of St. Mark's Church, Marco Island, Florida
Victor J. Latavish & Michael E. Thomas Architectural Drawings
Clark Consulting Engineers Inc., Fort Myers, Florida Structural Engineers
Robert E. Jewett, PE, Florida Mechanical Engineer
Burgess Engineering, Fort Myers, Florida Electrical Engineer
Casey Construction Company, Cape Coral, Florida General Contractor


Links to more photographs of St. Mark's Church:

Church Construction
Tower Construction

Presentation Drawings
Exterior Photographs

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E-Mail address Latavish@worldnet.att.net

Copyright 1998 Victor J. Latavish Architect, P.A., Naples, Florida, all rights reserved.
Photographs and drawings are property of Victor J. Latavish AIA, Naples, Florida

This page was last updated October 10, 1998.