Sunday Service Announcement, May 31, 2015:
Good
Morning:
The
recently issued Clarion contains a
message about a Capital Campaign to address significant issues related to our 50-year old facility.
Here’s
some more detail:
Julie
and I live in a house built in 1961. We’ve had the privilege of dealing with roofs,
driveways, bathrooms, flooring, carpeting, insulation, door locks, curb appeal,
… You can probably identify with the
list.
The
Trustees at St. Paul’s deal with a similar list as part of their regular duties. But now the issues are beyond the annual
budget.
For
several months, the Trustees have been compiling a list of work to be done,
investigating solutions and contractors, and forming an idea of
priorities. This is in addition to their
day job of maintaining the church. That
list now resides with a team that I lead that was chartered by Church Council
to bring the broader perspective to the issues and develop a plan to deal with
them
The
list has 2 broad categories – urgent work and work that can be done later.
Under
the urgent label:
Major
work is required very soon (we’re shooting for this fall) to address serious
issues with the flat roof, the slate roof, and the stained glass windows (there
are 2) and surrounding stonework. This
work will cost between $300,000 and $400,000.
How
will we pay for this?
We
are currently applying for a construction loan to finance this work
because this work will proceed prior to
any fund-raising effort and exceeds our financial reserves.
Who
has to approve this activity?
Church
Council approval is required for all
project and funding recommendations from my team. If we get a lien or mortgage type of loan,
that will require charge conference approval – that’s the UMC equivalent of a
congregational meeting.
What
are the less urgent projects?
These
projects are still being developed. The
list includes work in the sanctuary
(lighting replacement, carpet, and floor refinishing), parking lot resurfacing,
flooring and carpeting in classrooms, the front sign, and safety and security
systems. The good news is that we can
postpone those projects until 2016. That
gives us time to engage everyone in the
conversation and to benefit from a
funding campaign that will probably occur in early 2016. Church Council is forming
a team to plan and manage that effort.
How will we communicate with you in the
meantime?
We
will keep you up to date via the
website, the Clarion, the Grapevine, and by announcements such as this
today. We expect to post the full list
of proposed work on the website very soon –along with pictures to illustrate
some of the urgent needs. As your
questions and concerns roll in, we’ll post an FAQ section on the website.
And
the contest is still open for a theme for this effort. See me with your ideas.
Thank
you!
Saturday, June
13, 2015
More
detail about the urgent work:
Suzanne Utke, Chair of Trustees and member of the Capital Campaign Policy Team, presented a visual story of the challenges we face during Sunday Services on June 14. Here's a link to her slides.
And here is some commentary to augment her pictures.
And here is some commentary to augment her pictures.
Flat
Roof:
The
roof, except above the Fellowship Hall and the sanctuary, is flat. It’s also “green” but not in the true meaning
of the word. We just have unwanted vegetation growing up there. The insulation has totally deteriorated and
there are numerous cracked seams. The roof has been repaired frequently over
the years but is now beyond repair. Time
for a total makeover.
Slate
Roof:
The
slate roof over the sanctuary has permanent slate shingles that are now
becoming loose and some have fallen off. Each shingle needs to be
re-secured by replacing or tightening the screws and the shingles that are
missing need to be replaced to preserve the integrity of the entire slate roof.
Stained
Glass Windows in Sanctuary:
Each
mosaic piece of the stained glass windows is glued to a casing. The
facets of each square panel to the windows are also glued together to secure
them in place. Over 50 years, the glue has dried up and the only thing
holding the pieces in place are the casings and facets. All mosaic tiles
and the square panels need to be re-secured for structural stability and to
prevent any portion from falling out, which would mean very costly replacement,
not just a repair.
Stained
glass window in front:
The wood around the stained glass in the
front of the church (look up as you enter the front entrance) is totally
rotted. You can put your finger through it. It is the frame for the
stained glass holding it in place. It needs to be completely replaced.
Stone
Pillar between the 2 Stained Glass sections:
This
is actually a chimney issue. The cap on the chimney has failed and the mortar
between the stone is cracked / cracking, permitting water to seep in.
Evidence of that water can be seen between the stained glass windows on the
stone near the ceiling as calcification. The calcification is getting
worse each week. The chimney and all stone need to have the mortar
replaced.
The
HVAC unit that supplies Fellowship Hall:
The large HVAC box has collapsed and has been destroyed by time and weather. It is being held together with duct tape and tarps right now and needs to be replaced (not repaired.) There is vegetation (a tree) growing from the box and because the roof is in such bad shape, no one should be going up there to add more duct tape or “weed” the box. This box is on the flat roof between the Memorial Garden and the kitchen. It is visible as you walk down the hall between the Memorial Garden and the sanctuary.
Regards
Mike
Rominger
Capital
Campaign Policy Team
