Some of the steel bars are being formed into grids which are called "mats". These mats will be placed in the concrete footers which will provide the foundation for the new building. The pits for the footers will be dug out next week, and some of the concrete footers may be poured.

Some of the work being done currently is to get the dirt floor of the construction smoothed out to the proper level. Workers are taking sightings using a laser level in a fixed position. They carry a measuring stick with a receiver device on it. When they place the stick on the ground, they get a signal when the level is correct and the signal from the laser level hits the proper height on the receiver stick.

During the week of February 27, you may see some additional digging in what is now the dirt floor of the construction site. In the lower level youth area of the new building, there will be a large assembly room that will have a step-down floor that will be about 2 feet lower than the main floor level. The step-down floor will allow for an elevated stage at one end of the room. The step-down floor area is what may be dug out next week.

Update as of Wednesday, February 15

The hillside continues to disappear at a fast pace. Steel for the foundation footings has arrived. And coupled with the arrival of the steel rebar is the sad fact that we will lose some parking spaces. Some spaces in the small lot next to Mammoth Oaks Drive that were available last Sunday will be blocked off this Sunday.

Survey points have been taken for the foundation footings, and we probably will see digging for the footings begin next week.

We seem to have a jinx with all of our construction projects. Because we have torn down older houses to make room for our new buildings, there always is a risk of an underground oil tank. We are now 3 for 3 on oil tanks during construction. We had one during the Ministry Center construction and another one during the parking lot expansion in 2007. This morning (Feb. 15), we hit the tank under the old Parsonage/Church Office/Youth House site. Damage and spillage was minimal, and the removal and remediation/clean-up was handled according to all rules and regulations.

Just for reference, the dig into the hillside is fairly deep. The bottom picture was taken approximately 5 feet above ground level, and this should give you some idea of the depth of the cut into the hillside.

Update As Of Thursday, Feb. 9

Construction is off and running!

The trees have been cut down, but some of the largest and oldest tree trunks have been tagged and saved. Some of our church members will turn these into furnishings such as the altar and pulpit for the chancel of the new worship center.

What is happening currently is that dirt from the hillside next to the Ministry Center is being removed to make room for the lower level of the new building. This will take another 7-10 days. After that, footings for the foundation walls will follow.

You may see some activity during the next several weeks on the backside of our property along Mammolake

Road. This will be construction of a sidewalk along the street. This is required by the City of Charlotte and was deferred from our parking lot expansion back in 2007 because the city was preparing to rework the storm water system in the neighborhood. The storm water work by the city would have torn up the sidewalk, so the city agreed to allow us to build the sidewalk during the construction of our new building.