By Dave Garlow, Junior Warden
Construction started on Monday, June 10, and we are now in our seventh week of construction. Good progress has been achieved in both the school and the church.
Church
The church construction is progressing nicely. In the Sanctuary, the pews have been completely refurbished, floors sanded, and the windows have been replaced with thermally insulated windows. The stained glass in the existing windows will be reinstalled in the same location in each of the new windows. The walls have been injected with insulation and new siding has been installed on the exterior sides. The hallway framing has been completed (affecting the Rector’s office, shifting the aisleway to the common room, and expanding the size of the bathroom to make it officially an ADA compliant bathroom). The coffee nook with provision for a sink, a space for the coffee pot, and some storage cabinets, is relocated over the stairs. Air conditioning has been installed in the Rector’s office and the church office.
School
The Bethlehem School construction is also progressing rapidly. All the rough carpentry/framing is completed (splitting the big room in half, eliminating the small kitchenette in the Oak Room and relocating the Director’s office). The girls' and boys' bathrooms have been retiled, new toilets installed, and the bathroom partitions are installed. The floors throughout the entire school are 99% complete. Outside windows have been installed. The next major step is to install all the storage cabinets. Electrical and plumbing inspections are imminent. The school inspection is planned for Tuesday, August 6th to give us some lead-time to get all the necessary approvals well before the opening day of school.
Septic System
Since April we have been working diligently with the Board of Health to get approval for the new septic system. On July 18th we successfully got the approval from the Lynnfield Board of Health to proceed with the septic system. The work has started and is expected to take two to three weeks. The plan is to keep the existing septic system operational so the bathrooms are functional during the new septic system installation. Access to the church will be obstructed due to the septic system construction. Parishioners should plan to use either the entrance in the rear of the building to the school or the front doors to the Sanctuary.
Summary
In summary, the church and school construction are progressing as planned. The construction team has worked hard to maintain our target dates, including working Saturdays and holidays. The septic system approval took much longer than anticipated, however, we have plenty of time to upgrade our system in the next three weeks. We thank all of you for your patience and understanding during this construction.
Comments