Property Team Annual Report January 2007
Team Leader - Mike Bauml
This year the property team welcomed Carla Stevens on board as she took over the Kitchen Ministry. Carla is doing a great job keeping the kitchen organized. She also gets a lot on help from Pat Dravillas. Many people do not know this, but Carla and Pat come in during the week to insure that the kitchen and fellowship hall are kept clean and well stocked for our parishioners and visitors. Thanks to both of them for their hard work. I would also like to once again thank all of the property team members for their hard work and for putting up with my meetings and requests for reports and updates. Many times their work goes unnoticed but is vital to the functioning of our parish.
I would also like to thank those you come our for the work days that we have from time to time. There efforts allow us to not have to pay someone to do these jobs for us. Our next cleanup day will be in the spring to get the building and grounds prepared for Pascha. Please take the time this year to help. It can be a very rewarding experience.
HALL USAGE: The fellowship hall is available for use by parish members for different functions. It can be reserved by contacting Mike Bauml and is subject to certain rules and feast days and the approval of Father Andrew. Donations for the use are appropriate and are at the discretion of the individual. These funds go back into the property fund and allow use to further improve the property.
FINANCIAL STATUS: When the new building was completed, several projects were left uncompleted due to the fact that building costs were higher than anticipated and we did not qualify to receive additional funds. At first the property team had available the tower funds over and above the mortgage costs to complete these projects. Since then we voted to designate a lot of these funds to charity and the prepaying of the mortgage. While I agree with these allocations, it in effect means that there are no additional funds to complete these projects. This is the reason that from time to time we make appeals for funds for specific projects and take a building fund collection each month. In 2006 we had our first full year of building fund collections and the total collected was 14,000. It was this that allowed us to refinish and waterproof the old basement area. We sincerely thank you for your generous support and the confidence that you have placed in us. In the coming year, we have before us three major projects that are currently in the works. These are the repainting/refinishing of the church walls, the construction of an entrance way and fence for the front of the property, and a new church sign. These projects involve permanent structures that we will with us for many years to come. They will be addressed in detail later in this report, but the scope and ultimately the end results will be in part determined by your generosity.
TEAM PROJECTS COMPLETED
New Sidewalk: A new sidewalk was completed around the back of the building. This was important for us to insure that we could safely have processions around the building on feast days without the danger of someone falling or the dangers involved with having the processions on the main street as an alternative. Ductwork: The ductwork in the old portion of the building needed to be cleaned. It had not been done since the construction of the new building. Landscaping and lawn repair: As a result of the installation of the new sidewalk and the drought of the summer the lawn was all but gone. Landscapers were brought in and this was repaired and the lawn reseeded. I would like to take a moment to thank Mary Kincaid who takes care of the landscaping for us. She pulls weeds, waters, trims bushes, or whatever it takes to keep the property looking so beautiful. Removal of the old driveway: Landscapers were again brought it and the old driveway in the rear was removed and sod placed. Also the stones are weeds next to the cell towers were removed and replaced with lava rock. Old Basement Remodel: Following the waterproofing, the old basement remodel was completed except for a few odds and ends. New drywall was placed and the walls reinforced. Light fixtures were replaced or repaired. Walls were painted and a new tile floor was installed. This allowed us to clean our and reorganize the storage and tool rooms. New shelves and cabinets were purchased and all the unnecessary articles were disposed of.FUTURE TEAM PROJECTS:
The following list of projects are under consideration and if and when they get done will depend in large part on the availability of funds. If you have expertise and can help with any of these or if one of them is something you can contribute funds to; please let use know.
A roll down window will be installed in kitchen window. Carpeting and painting the new stairways - in planning stages Shutters for the secretary room window. Resolve the parking lot issue with the forest preserve. Heater/ AC for Father Andrew's office: The unit to be used has been decided on and will be completed when installation issues are resolved. Beautify remaining old walls on east and west sides of the building. New church sign - This will be addressed in detail later in this report. Keyless entry system - pending available funds. In ground sprinkler system - the drought and the loss on the lawn demonstrate the need for this and it will be evaluated if and when funds become available. Repainting of the church area - We are hoping to get this done in the near future, possibly before Pascha. We are in the process of getting estimates and there is some discussion as to whether or not we will resurface the ceiling at this time. The cost for this may be prohibitive and it may be that we do the repainting now and address the resurfacing several years in the future. Father Andrew has requested that the ceiling be done in white while the side walls be done is a very light blue that matches the iconastasis by the windows. Remodel of the narthex - There is a need for a larger candle stand and some cabinets in the narthex area. Lee Kopulos is heading up this project and has been in contact with a carpenter concerning design and costs. Hopefully this also will be completed by Pascha. New fence on street side of property. This will be addressed in detail later in this report.This looks to be a very busy year and exciting year St. Luke's so please be patient with us during the construction phases and continue and if possible increase your support of the property collections. Anyone who has expertise in any of these areas or wishes to make a specific monetary contribution please contact Father Andrew or myself.
ISSUES TO BE RESOLVED:
Parking lot ownership: We have gained little or no ground in our discussion with the forest preserve. While we will continue to keep our options open, at this point we see little reason to think things will change in the near future. Basement Mold: Resolved with the new air purification system and the waterproofing and renovation of the old basement. Bell Tower Dome: The greening of the copper dome of the bell tower is beginning to run down the brick of the bell tower. We need to find an answer for this and possibly have the bricks cleaned in this area.Fence and Driveway Entranceway
For many years now we have been in need of a fence on the north side of the property. This was originally requested by the Education Team to help keep the smaller children safe and stop them from running into the street. Also a strong fence would act as a deterrent in the event a car lost control and came up onto the front lawn while parishioners were present. The fact that the speed limit on 107th street is as high as it is has been a concern for us. We tried to no avail to have the speed limit reduced so the next best thing we can do is to construct a fence. We would have liked to construct this fence during the construction of the new building but the funds were not available.
In considering our needs, we need a fence that is strong, long lasting, and improve the appearance of the property. After much research the best alternative would be a brick and iron fence. This type of fence would match the existing structure, is the strongest available fence, and would give us 20 or more years of service. Also due to the available designs of fencing we can do this in a way that would beautify the front of the building.
While appearance is not the most important thing in selecting a parish it can be important for our evangelism efforts. First impressions can be important for new prospective members and for many a nice appearance of the property can be the first step in getting them to come to St. Luke's and find out what we have to offer.
As the project now stands, it will involve leveling the mound of dirt on the west side of the driveway, constructing a brick structure with the church name on either side of the driveway, and constructing an iron fence along the property in each direction.
I have met with a fence contractor concerning costs and designs and have been in contact with and will meet with a mason concerning the brick structures for each side of the driveway within the next month. It is our intention to begin this project in the spring. The approximate cost of this project will be 10,000 dollars.
In some ways this plan is a compromise as we would like to place additional brick pillars along the fence line as these would further enhance both the strength and the appearance. Initial cost estimates for these additional pillars are 800 dollars per pillar which may make them cost prohibitive. It has been suggested to me that individuals could donate the cost pillars in memory of their favorite saint. Anyone wishing to do something like this, please contact Father Andrew or myself. Additionally we welcome your feedback and ideas as this is an important addition to our parish. If you have feedback or ideas please let us know. We can be reached by email if you wish: Father Andrew oandrey@aol.com or Mike Bauml collector2630@yahoo.com.
After much searching the following page has pictures of the two most likely candidates for the style of iron work.
New Parish Sign
From an evangelism standpoint, this may be the most important of all our upcoming projects. Have you ever had the experience of suddenly noticing a business or building for the first time after passing it for many years? I am sure that many people drive by St. Luke's without really noticing or if they do notice a church they do not know who we are and what we are about. Our new church sign needs to correct this problem. Once again the sign needs to beautify the grounds, be functional, and long lasting. Also once again the speed limit on 107th street is a problem as cars going 40 to 45 miles per hour have little time to notice or read our current sign.
In researching this project, Father Andrew and myself have been in contact with a company called Innovative Church Projects. This company specializes in constructing signs for churches, schools and municipal building. Their products are top of the line and require little or no maintenance and are long lasting. After consulting with them based on our needs and the physical layout of our property, they have proposed three different designs which we are considering. These designs will be subject to zoning regulations which we are in the process of obtaining. At the end of this report are pictures of the three proposed designs.
Option 1 is an enclosed and internally lighted sign. It is sealed to present bugs from entering and has special features that allow easy opening for changing of the messages. The messages that are posted are assembled on a clear plastic sheet and then the entire sheet is replaced in the sign. The drawback of this type of sign is that the messages are limited and have to be physically changed. This obviously requires someone being in charge of this task. The interchangeable message sheets aid with this especially on cold days as with other signs someone has to stand outside and change the message letter by letter. The cost of this sign is 4800 dollars.
Option 2 is their first level LED sign. This sign has an LED readout of up to two lines. This type of sign is more noticeable and more easily read. The Led signs are connected to a computer and can be programmed with hundreds of messages. Meeting and special services can be added at any time. The cost of this option is 17,800 dollars.
Option 3 is a larger LED style sign . This sign supports up to five lines of text and larger letters which makes it obviously easier to read and easier to get our message out. The cost of this sign is 24,800 dollars.
The design of the sign boards is flexible and what is pictured is simply their suggestions. If there is anyone in the parish that would be interested in helping to design the sign board or has some experience in commercial art please let us know.
At this point we are still determining which way to go with this project but would like to get it started soon. The easiest thing to do is to say take the cheapest one, but we need to consider what is the best plan for the parish as we will be using this sign for many years to come. In part the decision will be based on the money that is collected the building fund collections or from donations from individuals who feel strongly about this project. If you wish to help by contributing to this project please let us know. Also please let us know your feeling concerning this project as your feedback will be important in our final determination.
I look forward to an exciting year at St. Luke's and hope and pray that we can accomplish the goals that we have set forth for ourselves. With God's help and your support I feel confident that we can.
Yours in Christ, Mike Bauml
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