Thursday, September 27, 2012

Just a reminder that fall has arrived! And once the windows and doors are installed at the main entrance of the new building, this is a preview of the great view we will have from the Upper and Lower Commons.

 

Before (December 19, 2011)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now from roughly the same perspective (September 26, 2012)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The front facade is filling in. The outlines of windows is becoming apparent. Insulation panels covering the surfaces should start next week.

 

The floor in the Lower Commons (Main Lobby) should be poured Friday morning. This will complete the concrete floors in both levels of the new building.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The skylight over the Lower Commons is in place. You won't see it on the exterior of the building. The interior picture is a little deceptive since no ceiling is in place and no sheetrock is around the interior base of the skylight at this point.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The concrete pad and surrounding brick wall for the air conditioner chiller is in process, and the large pipes that connect the outside chiller with the inside blower units are being laid on the Mammoth Oaks side of the building.

 

 

An exciting addition this week is the beginning of the exterior stone face on the building. They started on the columbarium side of the building and are working their way around on the Providence Road side.

 

And now for the biggest change this week which happens to be inside.......

Scaffolds all over the place!!! This is in preparation for the interior walls and ceiling of the worship space.

 

This is an overhead view from the catwalks. You can see some wood panels laying on top of the scaffolds. This is the work surface for the workers. Any volunteers to help???

 

And we end this week with a panoramic view of the new building and the bunches and bunches of materials sitting in the parking lot awaiting installation. A ton of roofing material arrived this week, so look for changes on the exterior metal roof deck next week!

Thursday, September 20, 2012

 

A frequent question that comes up is "How many workers are there on the job each day?" There is no easy way to gather all of them up at once to take a picture, but this picture of the parking lot should give you some idea. All of these vehicles belong to construction workers, and there are even more that are parked off to the right of this picture. Given that we have crews for structural, HVAC, plumbing, electrical, roofing and sheetrock on site right now, the daily head count probably runs 40 to 50.

If you looked at last week's blog, you saw this picture of one of the two air handler units in the basement below the chancel of the worship space. But read on.....

What we did not tell you was that, as large as that unit is, it was only HALF of the unit. This picture is the entire unit, and remember that there are two of them side by side. Can you say, "Larger than a minivan!"













The first of the two grand stairways in the main lobby is taking shape, and the second will not be far behind.

The landings halfway up the stairs will be large enough to have some benches for seating!


















In the main worship space, the back wall of the chancel is forming. This includes a round opening through which we will see the outside window on the Providence Road side of the building.

A minor but helpful detail-----the steps for the multiple levels in the balcony have been formed. Sure makes it a lot easier navigating around the balcony space!

The top of the steeple base continues to become more dramatic. The louvered vents have been installed on each side, and wood sheathing is being added.

 

 

 

Life is not perfect, and until the roof is totally enclosed, rain continues to create problems in the lower level!

This indented section of floor in the lower level becomes a pond after a good rain!

The youth assembly room, a.k.a. The Pit, is gaining more form each day. This picture was taken on the slightly elevated stage platform at one end of the room.

On the outside, the upper walls are turning from blue/purple (base sheathing) to gray (sealer spray) to white (insulation panels).

Here's the architect's rendering of the Providence Road side of the building, and that's the side that is shown in the picture above.


The white band just underneath the darker roof tiles and around the window is the space that the workers are filling in in the picture above.

The white panels that they are installing are insulation panels and not the final surface coverng.

The upper lobby has more and more "stuff" appearing!

 

We close this week with two large pictures, one of the worship space and one of the exterior panorama.

 

Also, watch here and on the church's WEB page and in the weekly e-mail for news on the arrival of the steeple and the mounting day (probably sometime in the 2nd week of October)!

 

 

 

 

Thursday, September 13





Building Heritage...

• Remember the big trees out front?

• Had to be cut down because they were in the footprint of the new building?

• But the trunks were saved for use in another form.

• Off they went to the lumber mill

• There they were cut into broad sections and then into boards.

• Then, after some curing, some of our church members started working their magic!

• It's not stained and finished, and there are more pieces of chancel furniture in the works from these magnificent old trees. Heritage in the making! Fifty years from now, somebody can say, "See that stuff in the chancel? Betcha can't guess where that came from!"

You Can't Turn Your Back......

• Pictures on the left below are from last week, and pictures below on the right are the same thing from this week. Things are changing so quickly on the site!



 

Up On The Roof....

Insulation panels are on the roof deck and ready to be installed on the high roof. Then wood decking. Then shingles.

 The roof deck on the steeple base is getting its green metal covering.




















When Sermons Get Hot...



There will be two large air handler units in the lower level under the chancel that can handle the load! Those are being installed now, and you can tell how large they are by comparing them to the worker next to one of them!










And Elsewhere.....

Installation of the outside drainage system including catch basins is under way.

The worship center is almost totally enclosed except for the windows.

The exterior panels that appeared to the blue/lavendar are being sprayed with a coating that is medium gray. This is not the final covering of these surfaces, but the "look" will change over the next several weeks as the color changes.

Hope your days are wonderful until next Thursday!