Why Are We Doing Renovations?
We are incredibly thankful for the building the Lord has provided to us but one thing it has lacked is a dedicated space for gathering before and after services on Sunday. The elders have been prayerfully considering options for a few years and we are now in the midst of making changes to the lower level to accommodate a new, large, open lobby as soon as you walk in the main back doors. This is a large project with many moving parts.
PROJECT COMPONENTS
Classrooms & Market
Since adding the larger lobby takes away space for three classrooms and the Market, we are taking steps to make room by purchasing a portable for the Market to go outside, and purchasing dividing walls for our two largest classrooms (103 and 104) to make room for the three we’re losing.
UPDATE
- The portable is complete and The Market has officially moved in! A huge “THANKS” to Dave Whalley, Rick Stainthorpe, and their teams for the many hours they gave to get the portable finished.
- Classroom dividers in rooms 103 and 104 have been installed and are operational.
- We have installed soundproofing above the track for the dividers. This needs to be painted, then this project is complete!
- The soundproof spraying has been completed in the gym.
- Next step with the gym is to have panels installed on the walls to prevent sound bounce. This is a lower priority project, and will likely happen later this year.
Asbestos Abatement
Certain areas of the building have asbestos contained in the ceiling, as well as in the floor tiles. This is completely safe as long as it is not disturbed (so asbestos doesn’t become airborne). However, since opening up the lower level will for certain involve disturbing these asbestos-containing materials, we have to hire a company to come in and do an asbestos abatement (this was already completed in the gym a couple years ago). This project started in October, and finished in January.
UPDATE
- The asbestos abatement is COMPLETE! Thank you for your patience as we have had to navigate this project and closing off sections of the building. All areas of the lower level are now open and asbestos-free!
- Our floors and ceilings may look a little “rough” for awhile, but we appreciate your patience as we continue working on the renovations.
New Lobby
The last and final stage is the actual renovation work to remove the existing interior walls to open up the new lobby, then paint, install fixtures, etc. We are hoping to have this entire project complete for our Fall 2022 kickoff.
UPDATE
- We have finalized architectural, structural, mechanical, and electrical drawings.
- We have applied for a permit with the city, and they have completed their initial review of our submission. We have been advised that the full review will be complete by the end of May.
- In the meantime, we found out from the city that a demolition permit is not required to remove the interior (non-supporting) walls, so took the walls down earlier this spring, opening up the new space.
- We have also been working on some of the electrical, plumbing, and HVAC work.
- New flooring is being installed in the hallways. Once the electrical work is complete, which we anticipate will be mid-June, we will work on painting the ceiling and walls, and then installing flooring (carpet) in the rest of the lobby.
New Floor Plan With Larger Lobby
