The purpose of this page is to document the reconstruction of our historic First United Methodist Church of Burlington, Iowa in the aftermath of an arsonist's fire in April 2007. For the benefit of visitors to this page who may be unfamiliar with our church or with Burlington, it seems helpful to offer photos which demonstrate the background of this project. You can view photos of the church building during and immediately after the fire by clicking on "The Fire" in the menu at the top of this page.
Months after the fire the church walls had been braced and covered to protect them from damage by wind and water.
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The Boesch Department Store building (also known as Stoermer's) on Jefferson Street to the south will be connected to the church by a skybridge. This was the building's appearance at the time of its purchase by the church.
(to check out potential future names of this building click here)
HLKB Architecture of Des Moines has been hired to design the reconstructed original church building and the repurposing of the Boesch Building in a historically authentic manner. The following photos show HLKB's concept drawings.
This is the north entry of the church building on Washington Street. From the outside the church will appear as it did before the fire. The interior will be similar though not identical and will have modern energy efficiency.
The sanctuary will look very familiar to church members though the balcony will now curve completely around the back. This was, incidentally, the original design of the building.
The space that once was Fellowship Hall will now contain a meeting space and classrooms. This central open space will be surrounded by classrooms with glass windows, effectively giving all spaces outside light.
This is the skybridge as it will appear when looking northwest at the back side of the church building.
This picture looks southeastward at the skybridge as it will connect with the Boesch Building.
This is a straight on view looking north across Jefferson Street at the Boesch Building. The large, historically correct windows will give the interior of all floors a very bright and open feeling.
Here is a closer view of the Jefferson Street entrance of the Boesch Building.
This view shows the Boesch Building's first floor interior. A central lounge area will provide members and visitors a comfortable place to relax surrounded by bookshelves housing the church library. The church offices will be at the back of the area. Overlooking the first floor is the mezzanine.
This view looking south toward the front of the building on Jefferson Street shows the interior of the new Fellowship Hall.
The top (fourth) floor will house the gymnasium area featuring a basketball court and dressing rooms.
The purpose of this page is to document the reconstruction of our historic First United Methodist Church of Burlington, Iowa in the aftermath of an arsonist's fire in April 2007. For the benefit of visitors to this page who may be unfamiliar with our church or with Burlington, it seems helpful to offer photos which demonstrate the background of this project. You can view photos of the church building during and immediately after the fire by clicking on "The Fire" in the menu at the top of this page.
Months after the fire the church walls had been braced and covered to protect them from damage by wind and water.
The Boesch Department Store building (also known as Stoermer's) on Jefferson Street to the south will be connected to the church by a skybridge. This was the building's appearance at the time of its purchase by the church.
(to check out potential future names of this building click here)
HLKB Architecture of Des Moines has been hired to design the reconstructed original church building and the repurposing of the Boesch Building in a historically authentic manner. The following photos show HLKB's concept drawings.
This is the north entry of the church building on Washington Street. From the outside the church will appear as it did before the fire. The interior will be similar though not identical and will have modern energy efficiency.
The sanctuary will look very familiar to church members though the balcony will now curve completely around the back. This was, incidentally, the original design of the building.
The space that once was Fellowship Hall will now contain a meeting space and classrooms. This central open space will be surrounded by classrooms with glass windows, effectively giving all spaces outside light.
This is the skybridge as it will appear when looking northwest at the back side of the church building.
This picture looks southeastward at the skybridge as it will connect with the Boesch Building.
This is a straight on view looking north across Jefferson Street at the Boesch Building. The large, historically correct windows will give the interior of all floors a very bright and open feeling.
Here is a closer view of the Jefferson Street entrance of the Boesch Building.
This view shows the Boesch Building's first floor interior. A central lounge area will provide members and visitors a comfortable place to relax surrounded by bookshelves housing the church library. The church offices will be at the back of the area. Overlooking the first floor is the mezzanine.
This view looking south toward the front of the building on Jefferson Street shows the interior of the new Fellowship Hall.
The top (fourth) floor will house the gymnasium area featuring a basketball court and dressing rooms.