Foward with Faith

Construction Update

By Jonathan Farrell on behalf of the CPC

CAPITAL PROJECT UPDATE 6-26-09

Welcome back to everyone and I hope that those of you who have been away will notice some changes. Most noticeably, the new walk to the front of the sanctuary is complete; as is the new walk to the Perkins Room. Grading around the west and north sides is complete and the grass is growing. Up in the steeple, the south clock face has been restored bringing that portion of the restoration to a close.

Fellowship Hall, along with the new restrooms, is of course complete and the YMCA has been utilizing that space to house its infant / toddler program throughout the summer. As of this writing, the work in the nursery, gallery and kitchen areas is wrapping up. Our new water line is in and hooked up to our new lower level sprinkler system and all domestic water lines in the building. The classrooms are nearly complete; the flooring in the last classroom is being installed. Our masons continue to repair and replace stones around the church and the “punch list” is underway.

We are scheduled for a final building inspection on September 8th. After the successful completion of this inspection, we will be able to “move in”! Soon, the new classrooms will be occupied by our Sunday School kids. The YMCA will move its infant toddler program back to the nursery / gallery rooms and Fellowship Hall will be bustling during the week with preschool aged kids from the newly expanded YMCA programs.

The roof trusses stabilized, the masonry renewed. Smoke detectors, fire alarms and CO detectors are installed and brought up to code. The drainage and moisture issues are fixed; the “ditch” replaced with classrooms! The front door of the sanctuary – Accessible by all! This has been an incredible journey in the life of our congregation. It seems that not long ago we were brainstorming and dreaming about where to go, now this portion of the job is done. We are, however, still counting on the pledge income for the next 18 months and THANKS to all who have kept up with or accelerated their pledges. This project has been possible only through the hard work, commitment and sacrifice of each member of our congregation.

¹Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. ²Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. ³By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.

⁸By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. ⁹By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10For he looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

Thank you, God, for moving us all Forward with Faith.

CAPITAL PROJECT UPDATE 6-26-09

The renovation and construction projects have been making great progress throughout the late spring and early summer. The red roof pavers, salvaged from a UVM project, are in place and the skylights have arrived and are being installed as of this writing. A valiant effort was made to put the green roof planting trays, which were eliminated to control costs, back into this phase our work. Unfortunately the cost of these trays proved to be prohibitive at this time for three main reasons. First, the pricing we had was based on a larger quantity from our design before the shape of the addition was changed due to our underground, century-old stone culvert. Second, orders require a six month lead time or they face a steep increase in price. Third, the trays are shipped express with live plants from Connecticut. The good news is that we can add the planting trays at anytime, and our current thinking is that we may be able to locate a source for empty trays which we can then fill with native soils and native plants.

The new rooms have been sheet-rocked and the mechanical systems for both the new rooms and Fellowship Hall are largely in place. The lower level will be serviced by new high-efficiency boilers which will be coupled with a mechanical air exchange system which will keep the lower level nicely ventilated. The lower level will also be serviced by smoke and CO detectors as well as by a sprinkler system. Our team was able to convince the Fire Marshall that the large flashing strobe light and horn should not be mounted on the front of our historic building and they allowed it to be mounted more discreetly, yet effectively, at the base of the western side of the western tower. The lighting will be upgraded as well. We were able to save cost and materials by rewiring existing light fixtures with efficient T8 ballasts which will lower usage and greatly improve light quality. New accent lighting will also improve the flexibility of lighting the big room.

The stone masons will continue working on the west side of the building now that they are able to make use of the roof terrace to set ladders and staging. The last clock face is also under restoration as it is accessible now that we are almost at final grading for the addition. Two new rain diverters have been installed which will direct water away from the buttresses on both towers; a condition which has existed for a long time and which has led to some of the needed stone repair in those areas. The roofers have given the main slate roof an additional inspection now that the work on the trusses is complete. We should note that slates can come loose from the roof, although this typically happens in the winter with heavy snows or in high wind conditions. As we plan on using the new terrace, we should keep this in mind and perhaps make more use of the southern end nearest the Perkins Room which is under a roof which is not so steep and not quite as old.

As the exterior work on the addition comes to a close, the site contractors will begin work on the new accessible walkways to both the Perkins Room and to the front entrance. This long-anticipated piece of the project will greatly enhance accessibility to the sanctuary and will allow us to show a more warm, inviting and inclusive face to the community.

Our contractors are planning final clean up and swipe tests of Fellowship Hall July 20th through the 22nd. At this time, the nursery space and the YMCA daycare will be relocated and occupy the newly renovated space which will also feature new bathrooms; each with a changing table. Good news for those of us with infants and toddlers! The work will then begin on the existing nursery and gallery spaces while the classrooms are completed. For the summer months, we should plan on holding Sunday School in the Perkins Room as we have been. Work is anticipated to be completed mid September at which time our new classrooms will be available. The YMCA infant toddler program will move back into the former nursery / gallery space. The Trustees with the support of Council and the Christian Development Boards are currently negotiating with the YMCA to expand the daycare operations; a win-win situation if it comes to fruition which will increase our involvement in our community, increase our rental revenues and allow our education programs to have their own space by entering a space-sharing agreement with the Y for the use of the Fellowship Hall.

The Thomas Study is also in process of being cleaned up and its use transformed into coat storage and a quiet place with some rocking chairs for those who may need a little private time during worship. The Library books have been sorted and relocated to the Perkins Room. This effort was removed from our project to save costs and is now a volunteer effort for which we will be recruiting some help in the near future. We will need some movers, some painters and a wood worker or two to complete the new room. A dedicated volunteer team has also been hard at work sorting and preparing to move the archive room to its new home in the addition.

It should also be noted that the staff has vacated their offices for a week in order to allow some mechanical systems to be installed above the ceilings in the offices. The staff graciously accommodated the work and decided to find the silver lining by taking the opportunity to paint the office and the Pastor’s Study. Our thanks to everyone who has supported this major effort and met the many challenges with a smile and with Faith.

CAPTIAL PROJECT UPDATE 1-25-09

Addition: The first pour of the walls for the new
foundation has been completed! The walls will be
poured in four sections, then as each section cures, forms
will be removed, water proofing will be applied and the
walls will be back-filled and blanketed for the duration
of the winter.

Trusses: The brackets are in place at the heel joints of
the trusses. Measurements have been made for the
cables which are being custom made to length. Samples
of possible paint colors for the brackets and cables have
been applied so that we may choose. All cables should
be installed by the mid to end of February.

Lower Level Renovation: Scope of work for necessary
lead and asbestos abatement is being prepared. Bids are
out now for the lower level renovation, completion of
the classrooms and the balance of the work on the
sanctuary and renewed front entry. Bid numbers will be
reviewed on February 4th at our next committee meeting
and we will begin the “value engineering” work if need
be.

Masonry: The mason restoration will start at the end of
the month once the walls of the addition are back-filled.
They expect to work through the end of August on the
pointing and stone replacement.

What does all this mean? If all goes smoothly and we
are able to keep our crews on site working, the entire
project could be finished by mid-fall. This means, of
course, that our billing will out-pace our pledging by
nearly $700K.

The Capital Project Committee along
with the Trustees and Council are looking at how to
make this happen by a combination of short-term
borrowing and advancement of pledge income. Are you
able to help by advancing your pledge? As always,
please let us know if you have any questions or
concerns.