Roof and moisture
Leaks, gutters, walls, paint, ceilings, and visible deterioration.
TOTTEM COLOMBIA · CHURCHES
Architecture for places of faith and community.
We diagnose, design, and guide interventions for churches, chapels, parish houses, and community halls that need to care for their structure, daily use, and the dignity of the place.
01Roofs and moisture02Light and sound03Altars and symbols04Halls and community
CRITERIA
Before intervening, we have to understand what the place holds.
A church does not function like any other building. Mass, catechesis, community gatherings, maintenance, budget, neighborhood memory, and the symbols the community recognizes all coexist there.
- Daily use
- Celebrations, formation, meetings, and community care.
- Material and deterioration
- Roofs, moisture, paint, systems, ventilation, and access.
- Liturgical character
- Altar, light, sound, images, paths, and the proportion of the space.
READING THE PLACE
Every decision touches the building, the rite, and the community.
A leak affects the paint. Poor light changes the atmosphere. A deteriorated hall limits community life. That is why intervention is thought of as a system, not as an isolated repair.
ASSESSMENT
The physical, liturgical, and community conditions are reviewed together.
Before proposing an intervention, we organize what affects the building, daily use, budget, and the dignity of the place.
Altar and symbols
Location, proportion, paths, images, memory, and hierarchy of the place.
Light and sound
Natural light, ventilation, acoustics, visibility, and comfort.
Community and halls
Formation, meetings, care, catechesis, and gathering spaces.
Budget and phases
Separate what is urgent, convenient, and viable with available resources.
Work during operation
Intervene without blocking liturgical and community life.
SCOPES
Clear scopes to move forward without improvisation.
First we understand the problem. Then we define whether the path is assessment, maintenance, design, drawings, or phased construction.
Technical diagnosis
Visit, survey, physical condition, risks, and intervention priorities.
RoofMoistureSystems
Maintenance and repairs
Targeted corrections to stop deterioration and recover use.
PaintLeaksCeiling
Liturgical renovation
Adjustments to altar, lighting, paths, furniture, and atmosphere.
AltarLightImage
Drawings and construction
Documentation, budget, purchasing, and execution support.
DrawingsConstructionHandoff
PROCESS
A short, visible, executable process.
A technical visit should leave a clear route: what to address first, what can wait, what requires design, and how to move forward without disrupting community life.
Listen
Understand use, community, urgency, and available resources.
Review
Read physical condition, moisture, roof, light, sound, access, and risks.
Organize
Separate what is urgent, viable, and what requires design or budget.
Document
Define scope, priorities, images, drawings, or pricing according to the case.
Accompany
Coordinate decisions, purchasing, and phased construction when the project moves forward.
FIRST CONTACT
Tell us what needs to be solved.
Share the condition of the place, the urgency, and the type of community. We review the information and reply with the next step: technical visit, assessment, maintenance, drawings, or phased construction.