ONCE COMPLETE, THE CENTER WILL FEATURE ART, HISTORICAL EXHIBITIONS, AND PROGRAMS.

A small, nondescript building, built during Prohibition to house the caretaker of a historic Baltimore church, is the future home of the city's new German American Cultural Center.

The former sexton's residence at 146 N. Gay St. has stood empty for many years. Now, Murphy & Dittenhafer Architects is tasked with revitalizing the boxlike structure for a new purpose.

"We are reusing a dilapidated building that otherwise would just be sitting there and costing money," Architectural Designer Ralph Muenstermann says. "An empty building that nobody uses makes a city go downhill. Anything that we can do to revive city life -- to inspire people to walk again, to have another place to go to -- that's a huge step toward the revitalization of Baltimore."

The commission is not an extravagant one, he says, but it's an opportunity to enliven the block.

"I like to be creative with new materials -- a glass storefront, new lighting. Anything to make it more interesting," he says. "An old building gets a new facelift but in subtle ways."

'THE GERMAN CHURCH'

The structure is adjacent to Zion Lutheran Church, which was built along Lexington Street in 1807 to replace the original 1755 church, according to church member Noreen Herbert.

Known locally as "the German Church," Zion Lutheran and its congregation celebrate their German heritage. The cultural center is the latest manifestation of that mission.

"Restoration of the Sexton House became the focal point for a group of citizens of German American (descent) to house a Center to promote, collect and preserve the thoughts and ideas of German Americans both past and present," Herbert says.

Once complete, the Center will feature art and historical exhibitions, Muenstermann says. M&D's design of the building, he explains, is low-key so as not to distract from the exhibits.

"We really want it to be as modest as possible," he says.

A BOX BECOMES A SHOWCASE

The starting point for the commission is the residence, which is currently unoccupied.

"I understand from the client it was not used for a long time," Muenstermann says. "It fell into disrepair over the decades."

The building is approximately 750 square feet on each floor and appears to be structurally sound, he says, although it's in "desperate need for repair and upgrade." That includes dealing with some water and termite damage.

The building is a fairly simple box, Muenstermann says.

"It's not a very adorned building -- not a very typical style," he says. "It's hard to place it. In some ways it resembles a gothic design, but it's kind of odd, it doesn't have a clearly defined style."

M&D's redesign incorporates much of the existing brick facade, mostly adding some glass for a new entryway on the western side, on Holliday Street.

A small, one-story addition on the western side will increase the footprint of the first floor slightly, he says.

Inside, the redesign centered around a LU/LA (limited use, limited application) elevator, which provides access to the second floor and basement levels.

"That quickly became the catalyst of all the changes for the floor plan," Muenstermann says.

Otherwise, he says, "the main thing is getting rid of the fluff in the interior that we don't need. We're taking out a bunch of interior walls that limit the use of the space. They're not load-bearing walls, so we can easily do that, and it frees the footprint up."

READY TO START

M&D is also removing some unnecessary steps, adding restrooms, opening a portion of the first floor for use as a large meeting room, and converting second-floor spaces into offices and conference rooms.

The plan is to restore hardwood floors on the second story, install new wood floors on the lower level, and expose some brickwork. The drywall color scheme will be muted, Muenstermann adds, "with accent colors to bring out some interior features."

They've also incorporated a green roof to reduce heat gain in the city.

The overall project is estimated to cost $750,000, Muenstermann says, and the firm is eager to get started.

"We don't want to draw attention to the building too much," he says. "It takes away from the main attraction, which is the church."