Mount Olive building for the future

2010-10-17T15:56:00.000-07:00

It's been a long while since I've posted any pictures. The major part of the project is complete, with some of these pictures showing the first workout that the kitchen got. It''s gotten plenty of use this fall, with at least four major events just in September and October. As with any new space, there are "kinks" to work out, but the traffic flow is less constricted and the place just looks and smells better.

The other two pictures show the new bookcases in the Pastor's office (thanks to Art and Elaine Halbardier), and the little curiosity now hung outside the Cantor's office. This is made up a various sized organ pipes and a tiny keyboard, and was a gift from John Manz to his father, Paul. John has now donated it to Mount Olive. It gets people's attention as they walk through the office suite.

Next up for the building committee: finish the library space, complete signage, and generally tie up some loose ends. More to come!

Our new "old" kitchen

2010-08-16T20:39:00.000-07:00

The contractor's work on the undercroft kitchen is nearly finished. Actually, the contractor's work on the entire project is nearly finished. We still have some work to do and will continue to ask for volunteers to help.
The undercroft kitchen is taking shape nicely. We have had the cabinets refinished, and with new wall covering, paint and cabinet colors, there is no yellow anywhere to be seen. You can just see a glimpse of the "new" cabinet color in the accompanying picture that includes the ovens. The dishwashing room is being completed, and mostly what's left is some finish painting and reinstalling the cabinets and work surfaces where we want them. Then the remaining new countertops will be installed and we'll be moving things back in to the cupboards.

There has been a tentative building project completion celebration date set: September 12. This coincides with the first Sunday back to the regular 2-service worship schedule. Lots to celebrate at Mount Olive these days! Stay tuned for more information.

Undercroft kitchen progress

2010-07-27T19:15:00.000-07:00

The remodeling proceeds on the undercroft kitchen. Most of the plumbing and electrical work is complete. A new "lining" on the lower three-quarters of the wall, called FRP (Fiberglass reinforced polysomething.....) has been put up. The paint color above the FRP will be a light shade of blue. We're close to selecting the cabinet colors and the electrostatic painting of those should begin soon. As you can see from the photos, the ceiling still has to go in, as does the floor. A glass block window has been installed in the south call to match the one on the east wall (yes, that is someone's hand putting in the blocks). The new lighting alone does so much to enhance the look of the place. The range hood still needs to be cleaned and painted (any volunteers to scrub a range hood?).

In the upstairs kitchen, the cabinets have just been painted and look very nice. That was an "add-on" to the project, but the need became very apparent when we reinstalled old cabinets in a newly done kitchen.

Meanwhile, the upstairs spaces continue to get lots of use. Lots of hospitality goin' on!

Grand re-dedication - September 12! Should be fun!

2010-07-04T11:20:00.000-07:00

I've attached a couple of pictures to show how the new space on the main floor is already being used. Coffee is currently being served in the newest space on the west side. Adult ed forums are in their regular place in the Chapel Lounge. We are planning to replace the cranberry couches with newer seating, but they are being used temporarily until we figure out how to pay for new ones!

Decisions have been made about the colors and materials for the downstairs kitchen. We are not able to use an epoxy coated floor as was our original plan. So we will be installing quarry tile, as is standard in most industrial/commercial kitchens these days. Since the old yellow tiles are now gone we had a clean slate for colors. So the floor will be a quarry tile brown, the walls will be blue and the countertops will be a gray/brown/blue pattern. Color samples were passed around after worship this morning for congregational input.

So the work continues and hopefully will be wrapped up soon!

Look Ma, no more yellow tiles!

2010-06-22T20:10:00.000-07:00

That's right! The kitchen was stripped of it's ugly yellow tiles today. This was not originally planned as part of the kitchen project. But after the old dishwasher plumbing was removed we discovered that many of the pipes had been placed in huge grooves through the tile, leaving very unsightly scarring that we weren't going to be able to cover up. So, out came the pry bars and the muscles and down came all the wall tile. (Thanks to Andrew Anderson, David Molvik and Gary Pagel!) This will enable us to choose the colors we really want for the kitchen rather than having to match the colors to the yellow tile.
In the pictures you see what's left behind on the walls - essentially a history of stylish paint colors from the early-to-mid 20th century. Or perhaps it's a history of extra paint that someone had in their garage....

In other news today, a crew of people started in on the final clean-up in the upstairs remodeled space. There's still plenty to do so if you couldn't make it this time, there will be more opportunities! Thanks so much to Andrew Anderson for organizing this work. On Saturday, June 26, you're invited to meet at the church at 9 a.m. to move the furniture back from the warehouse. It is possible we'll be hosting our first coffee hour in the new space this coming Sunday!

Undercroft kitchen demolition

2010-06-05T17:05:00.000-07:00

A great crew of nearly two dozen intrepid folks showed up today to disconnect plumbing and electrical lines, pry cabinets off the walls, pound holes in countertops and generally create havoc, all in the name of saving us a few thousand dollars on demolition costs. Working against a deadline of the need for quiet for a wedding going on in the sanctuary, the job took a couple of hours of actual demolition, preceded by a few hours of sorting and packing. On Monday, the mechanical contractors will come to shut off the gas lines so that the stoves/ovens can be moved, and work will begin on the kitchen remodel. We anticipate being without any kitchen in the building for week or so, but pretty soon the little kitchen upstairs should be in service for after-worship coffee and other events.
My favorite picture from above is the bucket of old plumbing pipes. The one pipe has a huge rusted gash in it, and obviously has been that way for some time. We also found some treasures: a kitchen use handbook that warned us all not to smoke while preparing food, a set of pictures of wedding cakes from the 1950's ($20 for a cake that served 200), and an old "quantity" cookbook for church. That one contained, among other things, a Mexican gelatin salad. Yum.

Getting close to the end!

2010-06-05T16:55:00.000-07:00

A few changes have taken place over the last few days, and the project on the main level of the parish house is really coming together. These photos show the new hallway flooring (the contractor finally figured out how to make it stick!), the little kitchen, just awaiting the stove, refrigerator and new dishwasher to be installed, the new countertop in the galley serving area, and the inside of the secretary's new office space. I really like the "feel" of the place, with lots more natural light from skylights and large windows, the way in which the space is now more flexible, and the updated colors and textures. And - this is really important! - the new bathrooms are open and usable!

2010-05-30T14:02:00.000-07:00

It's high time for a new post! But before you get to read about progress, you need to read this first:

We will begin demolition on the undercroft kitchen on Saturday, June 5, after the Community Meal - starting at 1 p.m. or so. Come grubby and expect to leave grubbier! We need as much help as possible to make this a quick-as-possible process. Refreshments will be served.

There have been some big changes lately, and other less visible work is moving along as well. In fact, we need two blogs to get all the pictures in. The pictures you see here (in no particular order, (because I can't figure out exactly how to order them the way I want!) you see the following:

There is new carpet in the west (front) hospitality area. It is lighter in the center with a darker border. Eventually we'll have seating areas, a small space for selling tickets, fair trade items and displaying brochures, and a display space for library items. Within the next couple of weeks we will be choosing window coverings for the three large west windows in this space.

The little kitchen has generated lots of interest and there are frequent inspections of the progress! The floor tile is an issue here as well (see next post), but all the cabinets are in place and countertop is installed. We will be having the visible cabinet surfaces painted. We weren't planning on this but they look pretty dingy against all new surroundings! The dishwasher and coffee maker are here and will be installed soon. Those will be very convenient for both Sunday morning coffee and receptions in our new space. The coffee maker is "plumbed in" so we will no longer have to drag it to the sink and fill it. It will brew a great deal of coffee when we need it. The dishwasher does a load of dishes in about two minutes, making short work of those Sunday morning coffee cups and sanitizing them as well.

See the next post for more....

2010-05-30T13:28:00.000-07:00

(Continued from the last post....)

You see two views of the combined Chapel Lounge and East Assembly Room with the doors that can be closed to divide them. This area has a new carpet with brick red and tan tones, chosen to compliment the wood wainscoting and the mosaic, as well as tie the color tones of the sanctuary and narthex into the education wing. One picture is taken from the hallway side doors of the Chapel Lounge looking toward the East Assembly Room and the other photo looks the opposite way. Window coverings will also also been chosen soon for this space.

The pastor's desk has arrived and if s/he gets tired, there is enough space on top for a nap. It's pictured in the pastor's office, but we want to make it clear that the pastor will not have to sit on the ladder. We will wait for the new pastor's input before buying a new desk chair. People have preferences about these things, you know.

You have a view here of the receptionist office furniture being installed. The photo is a little misleading. The built in furniture will be black. The desk will be oriented so that the receptionist can see down the stairs and at least partially screen people who ring the doorbell. Sliding windows will be installed in this space.

You see that the water fountain has been installed. Below the fountain you can make out some broken tile. There has been a problem with tile installation - the tiles have simply refused to stick with the conventional glues that have been tried. No one is sure what the problem is. But the contractors have experimented with different things and hopefully they will be able to solve this soon.

It's coming together and should be finished within the next month or so. I'll keep you posted.

The Heisley Honorary Fountain

2010-05-09T19:59:00.000-07:00

Before Pastor Heisley left Mount Olive for New York City, he participated in nearly every building committee meeting - more than a years' worth of meetings. He gave us many creative ideas and held up for us our ministry of hospitality. He also, as most of you know, has a great sense of whimsy. He loved the idea of a water fountain backed by colorful blue tiles. So we now have the Rev. Dr. William Heisley Honorary Water Fountain - or at least we have the tile back of the fountain. It does look like cool blue water, doesn't it? It will work well with the blue, green and neutral tiles on the floor when they're installed. Just another way to welcome guests to MO.

A Kitchen Decision!

2010-05-09T19:42:00.000-07:00

At our meeting this week, the Building Committee - with the blessing of the Vestry - decided to move forward with the renovation of the Undercroft Kitchen, a project near and dear to the hearts of many at Mount Olive. The intrepid kitchen users at MO turn out great meals, both for the congregation and for the community, but they do so in less than ideal working conditions. We aren't able to afford an expansion of the kitchen or all new appliances. But we will be rearranging things to make better use of the available space. Currently the food prep area shares space with the dishwasher area, which means that "clean" and "dirty" can mix, not a good situation for maintaining food hygiene. You can see the proximity of these two spaces in the picture at the top. So the dishwashing area will be moved to the smaller room off to the side of the kitchen (the room with the small windows), and what is now the dishwashing area will be converted to prep tables and storage space. This should also make for better traffic flow, as dirty dishes can be taken directly to the dishwashing area without having to pass through the kitchen. The freezers and refrigerator that are in the small room will be moved into the larger kitchen, in space vacated by the sink and countertop at the rear of the room.

We expect that work on the kitchen could commence within the next month, and that means that we'll need all of the help we can get to pack up and empty the kitchen, and take down cabinets. Watch for more information about volunteer days in the Olive Branch.

More finishing touches

2010-04-25T18:38:00.001-07:00

A few new details to point out: New doors on the three chapel lounge doors. In these views you can see one of them from the hallway side, and in another view you can see them from inside the unfinished chapel lounge, looking toward the west hospitality area. We have new doors on either end of the office suite. Also, most of the hallway lighting is installed, as are the hallway ceilings. What a great improvement that is! This week we hope to choose and purchase the new dishwasher for the little kitchen off the chapel lounge. We will also be looking at window coverings for all the new windows. The library committee will meet with the architect to discuss options for displaying books.

More furnishings

2010-04-20T19:04:00.000-07:00

Pr. Holly has said that she wants her interim stay with us to last long enough so she'll be able to sit at a new desk in the new pastor's office. We're getting closer! As you can see by the previous blog the carpet is in, the walls are painted and progress is being made. I wanted to post a few additional pictures of furnishings and colors.

The desk used by previous pastors has clearly outlived its usefulness. Time for a new desk! The picture here is not the actual desk that we'll order, but you get the idea. It will be L-shaped in a dark mahogany finish. The pastor also needs a small seating area for counseling and small work groups. We will be re-upholstering the chairs from the old office, which were considered a type of Danish modern style and worth keeping. The fabric swatch is in this post. We may also use one of the cranberry sofas from the Chapel Lounge.

The library will now have essentially two spaces - some shelf space for display in the new hospitality space and the larger collection in the library/archives room in the northeast corner of the first floor. In addition to new shelves in the front space, we will need a library cart that can be used both for display and for transporting books between the two spaces. A suggestion has been made that a children's table and chairs be put in the front room as well.

Lots of decisions are ahead and I'll keep posting about them.

Carpet! Tile! Lighting!

2010-04-20T18:49:00.000-07:00

Many finishing touches are starting
to appear in the new spaces. The bathrooms are tiled, painted and the fixtures are almost all installed. The offices and library/archives spaces are painted and carpeted. Lighting fixtures are being installed. The little kitchen cabinets are being re-installed. The "direction" of progress seems to be moving in something of a circle. The bathrooms will be finished first, progressing to the offices/library spaces, around to the little kitchen, then through the Chapel Lounge and the front hospitality space. Not much happening yet in the East Assembly Room, since that is the primary "office" space for the contractors.

At an adult forum this past Sunday I presented the progress, including where we are financially. I'm glad to share that info with anyone who wasn't there. The gist is this: while we will be able to complete the entire project, including the undercroft kitchen, within the $800K budget that the congregation authorized last fall, we will be short of our existing resources by about $35-$45K. This means that there will additional fundraising to do. The Capital Campaign group is working on that and you can expect some communication from them within the next few weeks.

The images that you see above are from the bathrooms, the view from the pastor's window to the door of her/his office (with brick wall), the new library/archives space, the secretary/receptionist office with the large window opening, and the little kitchen with cabinets being installed.

And now for the furniture....

2010-04-11T18:45:00.000-07:00

There are a few items that were not included in our overall budget. So, we'll be depending on the members of the congregation to help out with these. We have a furnishings committee that's been hard at work picking out the best, most cost effective items, and I'm going to start posting pictures, descriptions and prices in case any of you are moved to donate one item or several. Perhaps you want to donate a piece in honor of someone. Or join up with a friend or family member to purchase something that many, many people will be able to use for many years to come.

Brian Jacobs (interior designer), Carol Austermann (skilled with all things relating to fabric) and Naomi Peterson (great "eye" and lots of history with decorating) have made several recommendations for the new spaces. Remember that there are three hospitality areas, a new library space and new offices that need furnishings. We'll re-use as many of the existing pieces as we can, but don't want to put old, outworn furniture in a new space.

Let's start with furnishings for the front (west) hospitality area. The plan calls for two seating areas, arranged back to back. Each area will have:

loveseat (pictured above),
two barrel chairs (existing chairs which have been in the Chapel Lounge),
and two occasional tables.

In addition, we will be re-using the fabric benches that were in the Chapel Lounge and recover them with the scarlet fabric above. These benches will be placed under the three large windows in the front hospitality space.

Ambient lighting is currently under discussion, with the furnishings committee suggesting torchiere floor lamps placed between the windows along the west wall. Cost/feasibility of these is yet to be determined.

2010-04-07T21:26:00.000-07:00

We're in the process of deciding on the priorities for furnishings in the new spaces. Some things will get top priority - it's always nice if the pastor has a desk, and a new desk is appropriate for a new space. But other items are perhaps not as obvious. So the Building Committee is looking at the function of the new hospitality areas (former office space, Chapel Lounge and East Assembly Room) and generating a list of events/classes/meetings that the new space will need to accommodate. Here's our list so far - does anyone have anything to add? Let us know.
Sunday morning coffee fellowship
Adult education (often two classes at one time)
Vestry and other committee meetings, ranging from large groups to small.
Event receptions (i.e., Mount Olive Fine Arts events)
Art shows
Small luncheons
Break-out sessions for larger conferences (i.e., Liturgy Conference)
Reception function (i.e., visitor's greeting area)
Bridal dressing area
Library space
"Respite" area for parents and restless children during worship
Retail space - Sales of event tickets, brunches, etc., also books and other Mount Olive items

2010-03-23T17:44:00.000-07:00

Renovation Volunteers Needed!
Volunteers needed for Building Project! If you can help lay some laminate material on countertops in the new offices, please contact Mark Pipkorn at mpipkorn@transviva.com, or speak to Lora Dundek or David Molvik as soon as possible.

This is just the first call for building project volunteers. Over the next few weeks, as the construction workers, plumbers and finishers move out, we will need quite a few congregation members to move in with paint brushes, carpentry tools, pliers, screwdrivers and wrenches to help finish the work. In order to bring this project in close to budget, we planned quite a few do-it-ourselves projects. So expect that there will be more requests like the one above.

A look back.

2010-03-21T14:05:00.000-07:00

No, this is not a new construction picture. Rather, it's an early picture Mount Olive, taken with the whole congregation in front of the building. I believe that this one was from the late 1920's, when the congregation was trying to find money to build what would become our current sanctuary. At that time, the life of the congregation was contained in the basement of this structure. Remember that finances were tough in that era, yet the church moved forward with faith that they would be able to raise the necessary funds. Sounds like a familiar scenario, right? We are again reaching a point where we'll be asking for support for some items that weren't budgeted in our current plan. We will be re-using many pieces of furniture, shelving, desks, etc. Carol Austermann has generously offered her time to reupholster, among other things, the benches from the Chapel Lounge to be put into the new hospitality space. The red couches will be used for the staff offices. But we'll still need some new pieces for the hospitality space, the chapel lounge and staff offices. Watch for news about how you can help.
There are no new pictures this week. I decided that even though there is progress, most people wouldn't be too interested in pictures of plumbing pipes now coming out of the floors in the bathrooms. The most visually exciting thing, at least from my point of view, are the new windows on two sides of the building. The new office spaces have all new windows, and the east assembly room now has two clear windows looking out the back of the building. Just perfect for natural light on sunny mornings! If you stand in the right places, you can see all the way from the Chicago Avenue side, through the chapel lounge and out the other side of the EAR.

Brickwork and sheet rock

2010-03-15T21:51:00.000-07:00

I hadn't been in the building for almost a week, so it was easy to see progress yesterday. One picture you see here is of the finished - at least on one side - door openings to the chapel lounge. Three doors instead of one will ease congestion during large receptions. You also see the walled-in galley serving area, taken from the door of the little kitchen and looking through the serving window into the east assembly room.
Lots of progress has been made on the bathrooms. Much of the energy of the crew has been put into those. In the meantime, Mark Pipkorn and David Molvik spend many hours in the building, working with the construction crew, attending to details and making countless decisions about the best way to proceed. We all owe them a lot of thanks. And kudos to the staff for putting up with the noise and dust and general inconvenience. Hopefully they'll really appreciate the new space when it's finished.

Hospitality space and little kitchen take shape

2010-03-08T19:55:00.000-08:00

Progress is always slower during construction than during demolition, so it's nice to show some tangible changes. You see here three views of the new front hospitality space, formerly the old office suite. The support posts were removed today because the new steel support beam is fully in place. It's now possible to get a real sense of what the space will feel like. In one view you see what was the former pastor's office which will contain library shelves and seating space. In another view you can see the safe and storage closet, which will stay in place. Another view is looking straight on into the new space from the middle doorway of the Chapel Lounge. "Behind the scenes" work on this space is being done by the furniture committee (Brian Jacobs, Naomi Peterson and Carol Austermann) with a view toward comfortable seating and a warm and inviting feel.
Two other shots included here are of the two newly framed doorways from the Chapel Lounge into the East Assembly Room. In addition, the new wall of the little kitchen, opening into the cloak room for more space and easier access, now has drywall applied. This will be a much more convenient space in which to work, especially for larger receptions.

Whimsy (Construction Worker Style)

2010-03-08T19:47:00.000-08:00

OK - so you're standing at the urinal in the men's room downstairs and you just happen to look up. This is what you'd see. (Double click on the picture to improve the view!) It's probably better than looking up to see real eyes peering at you from up above in what is now the new work and storage room for the office suite, and what was formerly the men's room on the main level of the parish house. Sometimes holes in the floor created by plumbing removal create an opportunity for a construction worker joke.

New hospitality space opened

2010-02-28T20:44:00.000-08:00

This picture was taken at about 3 p.m. with the sun shining through what used to be the office windows. Now the afternoon sun will shine into a new expanded hospitality area. The beam that is needed to frame the space and support the roof after the load-bearing wall came down was installed this past week, and now we can get a sense of what this space will look like - minus the support posts, which should be dismantled soon. The dream is that it will be a combination library, welcome center and comfortable place for fellowship after and between services without disturbing classes or meetings being held in the Chapel Lounge or the East Assembly Room. And although the morning sun won't shine directly into the space, there will still be plenty of natural lighting. In fact, the entire upper level of the parish house will have lots of natural light. A total of 9 skylights will be opened or re-opened, the windows you see will let in western light and the EAR windows will be unblocked for plenty of morning sun. It's all part of the plan to make the space welcoming and comfortable.

And the last wall comes tumbling down....

2010-02-25T17:10:00.000-08:00

At last the wall between the old offices and the hallway is beginning to come down. The doorway standing nearly alone was the one we used to get into the secretary's office. Below the yellow caution tape you see the long steel beam that will hold up the ceiling when the wall is gone. The construction crew expects that the beam will be hoisted into place on Friday this week. Soon we'll be able to get a sense of the open space that we'll use as a gathering area for receptions or just some good conversation. (Remember that you can double click on the photos to enlarge them for more detail.)

2010-02-22T19:37:00.001-08:00

I've been asked many times in recent months about the mosaic in the Chapel Lounge - will it be removed? The answer is a resounding NO. In fact, we intend to enhance the lighting on the mosaic so that it can be better appreciated. While there was some interest early on in our discussion about moving the mosaic, that idea was dismissed as impractical and unnecessary.
When we first started on this project I did a little research on the mosaic. Warren Bartz (bless his heart!) remembered the name of the company that managed the 1980's remodeling of the Chapel Lounge, the Potente studio from Kenosha, WI. I sent photos of the mosaic to them and they identified the mosaic artists as being from the studio of Fabiano Favret in Pietrasant, Italy. You may check out their website at http://www.favretmosaici.com. If you read Italian, you can read the actual website. There is a translated version, pretty laughable in it's language. But you can get the gist. They have done lovely work all over the world, and our mosaic is an example of venetian mosaic art. It is likely that the design was done by Potente and executed by the Italian studio.
One piece of trivia - in the picture attached you can see the crossed swords. The small item above the swords is an ear, supposedly the ear of a slave cut off by one of the disciples at the time of Jesus' arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane. Two of the gospel accounts (Luke and John) specify that the slave lost his right ear. Apparently the mosaic designers/artists didn't read those versions!

2010-02-21T11:36:00.000-08:00

Here are a few more pictures - an update on Sunday, February 21. We're just over a quarter of the way through the project - about six weeks in and perhaps fifteen weeks to go. The contractor anticipates that this phase, consisting of the entire upper floor of the parish house, will be finished toward the end of May. Today we see clear progress on the bathrooms. In the picture with a wall opening framed mostly by bricks, some sticking out of alignment, you are seeing the roughed in mens' and women's bathrooms through what will become their new doors. The old doors to the library are being replaced with openings in a slightly different spot, and enlarged to allow for wheelchair access to the restrooms.

One picture is of a new door opening into the Chapel Lounge. Gone will be the large windows into the hallway, each one replaced with a large door. So there will be a total of three entry doors into the chapel lounge from what will be our new hospitality space (where the old offices were). This will help a great deal with the bottleneck of people trying to get into the chapel lounge for receptions after events and worship services such as Easter Vigil. In the rear of this photo you can make out the two new openings which will become the doorways from the Chapel Lounge into the East Assembly Room, allowing us to open that area easily for large receptions.

One photo is taken from the little kitchen looking toward the new framed-in door to the coat room. If you look carefully through the framing at the upper right of the photo you can see the housing for a re-opened skylight. There used to be a skylight in the coat room, but it was closed several years ago. We will have a total of two skylights in the coat room are to add natural light to what has been quite a dark space.

2010-02-14T17:55:00.000-08:00

I've added a couple more images taken today. One is of the opening in the wall at the top of the stairs leading from the north entryway (the entry with the elevator). As you come up the steps you'll now see an opening to the new secretary's office. The opening is also placed so that the secretary can see down the steps to the glass doors and will be able to identify anyone ringing the doorbell. The picture is taken from a couple of steps down on the staircase.

The other photo is taken standing just inside the new pastor's office. The framing immediately to the right is for the new very tall vestment closet. We will have a convenient space for hanging those long vestments. You can see both windows for the pastor's office, and just visible in the left rear is the framing for the women's restroom.

2010-02-13T11:35:00.000-08:00

The
three pictures you see here are all of the same approximate area. One is a photo of the framed-in "galley" serving area, looking at it from inside the little kitchen. In the right rear of the photo you see the door to the steps to the undercroft and also the existing small closet. Through the galley "window" you see into the east assembly room. This window will be a serving pass through and the galley will contain a countertop under which can be stored carts, etc. Right now there is no money in the budget for cupboards in the galley area.

Another picture is of the same galley area, but this time from the perspective of the east assembly area. In the right rear you can see through the framing into the little kitchen. Visualize this as a possible serving or staging area for receptions.

Finally, a picture taken from the hallway door into the Chapel Lounge. The two openings in the rear are the new doors which will link the Chapel lounge with the East Assembly Room. The "pipes" that you see in the front of the doors are temporary and are being used to brace the ceiling for the time being. The debris on the floor is from the walls which were demolished to create the door openings.

And the walls start going up!

2010-02-04T20:56:00.000-08:00

"Command central," a.k.a. the East Assembly Room. Eventually this room will also be remodeled with new windows, flooring, etc. The door on the left that you see at rear left of this picture will open into a new storage area, primarily useful for chairs and table storage (see below), and the door that you can barely see at rear right will open into a hallway. When they're not busy pounding on things, the construction workers can take a little piano break!

This is the beginning of the doorway to the new office "suite." The suite will be able to be secured from the rest of the main floor. The door barely visible to the left is the entry to the former cantor's office. That will be bricked over. At my left as I took this picture is the space that will be the new bathrooms.

Framing of a new chair/table/miscellaneous storage room is beginning. This storage will be divided into two sections, one accessible from the East Assembly room for chair and table storage, and the other accessible from the office suite hallway.
I'm standing at the doorway from the East Assembly room into the little kitchen. The door to the Chapel Lounge is on my right. Ahead you see into the coat room where the wall from the little kitchen has been removed so the space can be expanded. Can you see the end of the coat rack in the center rear of the picture? The new wall and doorway to the little kitchen will be placed approximately even with the end of that coatrack. This will add between four and five feet to the footprint of the little kitchen.

Other changes this week include the beginning of framing of the new bathrooms, the arrival (and perhaps installation) of the steel beam that will hold up the roof where the office wall used to be, and more work on what will be the secretary's office. When the steel beam is in place the former office wall will come down, completely opening the new hospitality space. Stay tuned!

Mount Olive Foundation steps up to the plate (and the coffee cup)!

2010-01-28T19:34:00.000-08:00

What's a new kitchen without at least a couple new appliances? The "super user" group that discussed the needs of the little kitchen decided a while back that the existing major appliances are fine for now. But they really wanted an automatic plumbed in coffeemaker (no more filling that giant pot from the faucet) and a dishwasher which would sanitize dishes and keep us all healthier! We did not build those items into the budget, but we are hopeful that we can raise donations to cover the cost. We are very grateful to the Mount Olive Foundation for their generous donation of $2600 toward these new appliances. We'll be counting on the rest of you to help us make up the rest! The commercial coffee maker will cost about $1300 - yes, it's a very good coffeemaker. The dishwasher is also a commercial grade unit, capable of washing a load of dishes every ten minutes or so, and will probably cost about $3000. So we'll be looking for an additional $2000 or so to purchase these items. They will make life easier on Sunday morning for our casual coffee hour suppliers, but even more so for our dedicated group of large reception providers. If you want to see the details of the new coffeemaker, go to the website below. I'll post the correct info for the new dishwasher later.

http://www.pamasco.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=395

And the walls come tumblin' down....

2010-01-28T15:18:00.000-08:00

You can click on any of these pictures and see an enlarged version.
Standing at the entrance of the coat room and looking into the little kitchen. The wall came down this week, and barely visible through the plastic barrier is the front of the stove and the existing door into the East Assembly Room. There will be a wall built at the end of the coat racks which will provide a doorway into an enlarged little kitchen. There'll be space for a dishwasher, a much-needed improvement, both for efficiency and hygiene. We're "borrowing" about four feet of the coat room for the additional space.

Looking through a now glass-less window into the Chapel Lounge. The cut out area in the woodwork indicates where one additional door into the CL will be. There will be a corresponding door on the opposite side of the existing door, resulting in easier egress into the CL for large receptions and events. No more reception lines snaking back into the Narthex!

The existing wainscotting in the CL will be retained. Ceiling tiles are now gone, leaving the "polka-dot" pattern of mastik glue across the ceiling.

Standing with my back to the storage closet in the old office - looking toward the former pastor's office. The plumbing at the rear left is what's left of the former pastor's bathroom. Important goal for the coming week is removal of the wall to the left, which will open up the new hospitality space to the former hallway and visibly connect it to the Chapel Lounge. The wall pictured at the far rear of this photo will eventually house new library shelves. Comfortable seating, some good books, a welcome center - living our hospitality!

The new view from the entrance into the former women's restroom, with the former men's room now visible through the demolished wall. The plumbing served both the former women's and men's bathrooms. The plumbing will be removed and the space will become a work room/meeting space for the office complex. The new bathrooms will be larger, more accessible and more attractive.

Destruc....er, construction update, week 3.

2010-01-25T16:56:00.000-08:00

A quick look around on Sunday morning revealed a few changes since the pictures below were taken. The old wall partitions in the soon-to-be expanded hospitality space (the old offices) have been removed. The only indication of an old structure there is the small square of ceramic tile flooring that used to be in the pastor's bathroom. The space that will be the new secretary's space is likewise taking shape with the removal of closets and a small bathroom in the old cantor's office. More old skylights have been opened in the Chapel Lounge. Meanwhile Sexton Matthew had an object lesson about the importance of hard hats when his head (which was fortunately covered in a hard hat) came into contact with a piece of hanging conduit. All is well. And we're impressed with how clean the contractors are keeping the building, despite massive amounts of dust and debris.
Upcoming decisions for the building committee this week include water fountain selection, location of the new plumbed-in coffeemaker and a new glasswasher for the little kitchen, radiator cover design for the offices and whether to keep or get rid of the folding altar in the east assembly room. Details, details.

2010-01-20T19:25:00.000-08:00

Interior walls of the office are mostly gone - this shot is taken from the former pastor's office toward the safe.

This is the reverse view of the new hospitality space, taken with my back to the safe, looking toward the former pastor's office. The office closets and the pastor's bathroom walls are still standing, but won't be for long!

The old bathrooms have been gutted - YAY!

The space that will eventually house the new bathrooms. Wall between the Cantor's office and the library has been removed to allow for expanded space for larger bathrooms.

The wall of the little kitchen that will be moved to enlarge the space and add an access door through the coat room. Cabinets have been removed.

First week of destru..., er construction

2010-01-17T11:56:00.000-08:00

We're off and running - or rather the construction workers are. The false ceilings in the
hallways have been removed, old insulation is off, openings have been cut to make room for the new entry doors to the chapel lounge, and in general, it looks like a construction zone. What used to be light fixtures in the Chapel Lounge have been removed to reveal the skylight structures within them. The eventual new office spaces are now filled with old insulation, false ceiling tiles and piles of construction debris.
This morning we held our first coffee hours downstairs in the undercroft dining room, and put out no-longer-needed items for give away or free will offering. Lots of things disappeared, and what remains will be out next week before being given away to a local charity. Pr. Hollie reports that the week went smoothly for the staff. There was a funeral at the church on Tuesday and Watson-Forsberg folks did a good job of maintaining quiet and making space available for a family gathering. In addition, Gail Nielsen and her crew of helpers emptied out the little kitchen off the chapel lounge, and David Molvik and Mark Pipkorn continue their work of wiring and rewiring, moving and organizing.

More photos from moving day, January 10, 2010

2010-01-10T15:07:00.000-08:00

One last thing had to be done at the warehouse - John's car needed a charge!

The intrepid warehouse crew: Mark and Linda Pipkorn, John Gidmark, Allen Dundek, David Molvik, Walt Hinck and Lora Dundek behind the camera.

Our furniture safely stored

The new home of the furniture at Endicott and Branford in St. Paul

The Sorensons and Dan Adams master a bulletin board

Moving Out Day 10 January 2919

2010-01-10T14:37:00.000-08:00

Well, you can't say that folks from Mount Olive don't respond to a call to help. True, we had a core group of movers today, but basically everyone in the coffee hour after 2nd worship hauled something somewhere. Thanks so much! We rented a truck, loaded it up mainly with the furniture from the Chapel Lounge plus random other large things and they now all rest safely at a warehouse location in St. Paul. The pictures attached here don't do justice to the number of people who helped out.
We found a quite a few interesting items as we were going through closets. One item (we're not quite sure what it is!) was wrapped in newspapers dated February, 1977. We'll put some of those things out next week - baskets, placemats, table cloths, wall plaques, etc. - and you are welcome to take them home with you.
The construction people begin moving in tomorrow, and we should soon see tangible progress on our project.

Oops! Incorrect date!

2010-01-03T11:48:00.001-08:00

The date of the office space move listed in the first post below is incorrect - it will be on Thursday, January 7.

2010-01-03T10:40:00.000-08:00

I want to acknowledge the hard work of the building committee members. They have been so great to work with:
David Molvik, co-chair
Mark Pipkorn
Linda Hafmeister
Brenda Bartz
Lynn Dobson
Dennis Bidwell
Kathy Thurston, ex-officio
Pr. Heisley (prior to June 2009
Pr. Holt-Woehl (since July 2009)

There have been others who have helped along the way - most recently Brian Jacobs, Carol Austermann and Naomi Peterson who are helping us evaluate our needs for new furniture for our new spaces.

And so we begin - again!

2010-01-03T10:27:00.000-08:00

After a long delay, we're on target to begin the new construction of the Parish House on Monday, January 11. The building committee decided to wait until after the Liturgical Conference, but this means that we will have only one day between the conference and the start of construction (or "destruction" which is what it will look like first, I'm sure!). Here's the plan:
The offices will be moved on Thursday, January 6, leaving behind only those things needed for running the Liturgical Conference. After the second worship service on January 10, we'll bar all the doors and you'll only be able to leave if you carry something out to a waiting moving van. (Just kidding!). But we are asking anyone who's available to share in a quick lunch provided by the building committee, change into some work clothes and help us move furniture mostly from the chapel lounge and the east assembly room. Some of it will go elsewhere in the church, but much of it will go into a rented moving van to be taken to a temporary storage facility on Raymond Avenue in St. Paul. So it you can follow the van to that location to help unload, it would be much appreciated. Please call the church office - 827-5919 - if you can help out. It will be so exciting to move on to this phase of the plan. I look forward to sharing updates and photos on this site.