This Chapel is located in the New Town of Blount Springs 35 miles north of Birmingham, Alabama. Blount Springs was the third town planned by Duany, Plater-Zyberk and Company after Seaside and Tanin, in the late 80’s. Due to its remote location, Blount Springs has been very slow to develop. When construction on the Chapel was begun, there were approximately 50 homes occupied in the village. The land for the Chapel was donated by the town founder, the design was completed pro-bono and the contracting was handled at cost by two builders who live in the village. Construction costs were paid by monetary as well as sweat equity contributions.  This was truly a grass roots effort. After completion, the Chapel was occupied by The Church at Blount Springs, a non-denominational Christian congregation that had begun in a building down the highway near an interstate interchange. Most of the congregation lives in the village so now they are able to walk to services.

The design of the chapel was conceived as a simple, unselfconscious interpretation of southern Greek revival church architecture. Due to the hilly, rural location of the village, the detailing tends toward the vernacular end of the Classical to vernacular transect. This can be seen in the stacked stone foundation walls and the exposed rafter tails. The white on white color scheme allows these informal details to blend into an elegant whole.

In a nod toward cost and maintenance, several “new fangled” materials were used. The siding is smooth 6” exposure Hardie plank, and the columns are Dixie Pacific fiberglass reinforced concrete. The roofing is 5 v galvalume. There’s nothing fancy about this building but it serves the needs of the community while keeping to a tight budget. The Classical language lends dignity to a relatively small public building.