Prior to the recent building projects, the Monastery of Christ in the Desert (MCD) consisted of several distinct buildings. The chapel is and will remain the spiritual and architectural focus of the complex. The refectory is located to the north of the chapel and a series of adobe casitas used as monks' cells are situated farther away and to the north. The new structures at MCD are the convento located farthest to the south, the cloister, to the immediate north of the existing refectory and a corridor addition that connects the cloister to the chapel and encompasses the east side of the refectory.

In determining the appropriate building systems, the project team looked at the siting of the buildings, the types of spaces the monks would require and the energy requirements for these spaces. These systems are described in more detail.
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