Happy Easter! Did you know that Easter is 50 days long and will continue until the celebration of Pentecost on June 4th? I hope you will continue to rejoice and share your Alleluia’s with each other as we give thanks for the gift of love from our Lord.
Now for the building update. The remaining south wall is being removed quickly! The trees on either side of the front steps are down, unfortunately just before they hit full bloom. These needed to be removed so that the lift and other construction accoutrements are able to be as close to the wall as possible. Myers Heating & Cooling, our faithful steam boiler maintenance company, are removing a few steam pipes from the wall as we speak. These need to be capped off and removed prior to the wall’s continued deconstruction. An important note is that we had to engage in some emergency asbestos abatement in the undercroft crawl space before Myers would enter and do the pipe work. Further asbestos abatement in the same area will need to be undertaken and is part of our 21st Century Restoration Project.
The final exterior replacement brick has been selected and a mock wall with these in it are leaning against the church wall on Seymour Street. We still have not been able to come up with the correct blend of interior bricks but are still working on it. I do want to share my surprise with you at the amount of gum discovered stuck under the pews when they were removed. I’m curious as to who is chewing gum in church?
An additional interior wall has been built to provide protection against the elements while the wall is down. It will be fully encased in plastic so that no rain or other such wind blown items will enter the church. The masons have disturbed our bat family and it is hoped that they have found new homes in other nearby buildings.
We are beginning a full structural analysis of the entire church facility and cloister area. Our structural engineer will be removing bricks from various portions of the building to discover what may lie behind it. There is concern about the structural integrity of the arches in our worship space.
At the same time, we are completing our renovations on the former Men’s Restroom in the Music Building. This will become a restroom for any person regardless of gender. You will find a lock on the door so as privacy is available during its use.
Laux Construction has been an impressive and caring company to work with during the last many weeks. They are responsive to our needs and respectful of our building and space. God has blessed us with these folks and their expertise.
One final note — the first estimate for the cost of the repairs to just our wall and stained glass window is
$1.6 million. My hope is that the money utilized for these repairs will assist us in engaging in $1.6 million worth of ministry over the next several decades.