Construction Update

We are making great strides in the construction of our new Parish Life Center. The heavy rains of a few weeks ago didn’t throw us off schedule too much. The building is nearly 100 percent “dried in” now and work both inside and out continues at a good pace. We’re actually a little ahead of schedule at the moment, and might finish a week or so earlier than planned. We’re targeting being completely finished by the early part of January 2013, and with a little luck we might actually wrap up before the end of this year.

As you can see the main outside work at the moment is the placing of the stone around the base of the building, and then stucco work will commence on the top portion. When completed, the new PLC will have the same profile as the church so those two buildings will look alike as part of our master plan for the campus. Of course the church has nearly four years of weather that has slightly changed the color, but over time the two building will be one and the same. I believe they will make a grand statement on the outside, not to mention their beauty and functionality on the inside as well. When the stucco is being applied to the new building, workers will also make repairs to the bell towers. Some hairline cracks (all cosmetic in nature, not structural) have appeared in the stucco of the tower, but can easily be repaired.

Inside the PLC there is a small army of workers going hard at each day to give shape to both the new parish hall and the classroom portion of the building. Interior walls are being framed, MEP (mechanical, electrical, and plumbing) is being roughed-in, and the A/C system is nearly ready for testing. The many classrooms and meeting rooms are coming together and it is looking great. The kitchen in the new parish hall is quickly coming together, with a new freezer and walk-in cooler expected to be delivered this week and new appliances coming shortly after that. I can’t wait to have our Lenten fish fry dinners in the new hall next spring. We even added an external natural gas pipe outside the back door of the kitchen so the Knights of Columbus can pull up their cooking trailer and deliver even more fish, hush puppies and fries in record numbers!

Both Deacon Phillip and I are meeting with external contractors on several of the interior items, including sound and audio/ visual and interior furnishings. We’re keeping a close eye on the bottom line as well, and so far we are on time and on budget (and we aim to stay that way). All of this is only possible through your continued support and generosity, so please stay up-to-date on your pledge payments, and if you have yet to join us, I ask that all families please make a pledge to our Capital Campaign so that we can grow our ministries and support the wonderful things happening at CtR.