Progress? That's an understatement!

As many of you already know, in order to keep moving forward on construction, our office staff vacated the South wing this week. The contractors have made quick work of the demolition and we have the picture to prove it! Take a look...

First...welcome to the new entry...or at least the opening for it:

Some of you may recognize this area...it used to be the band rehearsal area and bathrooms...















And welcome to the new lobby area - perfect for gathering and connecting...well, once there's an actual floor, that is....

Seeing these really keeps us reminded that as we remain on igniting H.O.P.E., God remains faithful in His great and amazing plans for Seneca Creek and the lives we have an opportunity to touch. We will keep the pictures coming, so be sure to stay tuned as we get closer and closer to occupying our new home!

Movin' on ...out?

Almost nothing about the renovation of 13 Firstfield and our journey to occupy it has been conventional. Of course, many folks would say that Seneca Creek Community Church has always defied conventional stuffy, cold and impersonal church experiences…and that is not a bad thing.

In order to keep the construction schedule on target for a December move-in, our staff is movin’ on out! Starting Monday, November 8, we will be fully operational with phones, email, database and printing from remote locations. All of the regularly scheduled meetings that are held at 13 Firstfield (including CORE and ReFuel) will also be temporarily relocated for 2-3 weeks, until we have occupancy of the North wing. If that affects you, be sure to check with your group leader for the new location.

So, if you see a staff person at your local Panera, Starbucks, McDonalds or any other fabulous free wi-fi hot spot, know that things at Seneca Creek Community Church are humming along! See you in the neighborhood…

We have the Sprinkler Permit!

You may have heard that our move into the North building was delayed because our contractor was waiting for the sprinkler permit so that he could begin the final item in the North building, the installation of fire sprinkler systems. On Wednesday, Oct 13, we finally received the permit so that work in this area can continue! The contractor expects to be finished in the North building by the end of the month so we are planning to move our offices over then.

You may be wondering, why the move now? Well, we must move the offices from our current location to the newly renovated spaces so that Kascon can do renovations in the South building. Work to be completed there includes, installing a lobby floor to connect the two buildings, new and larger restrooms, and a kitchenette/coffee bar. The picture above shows the open space that will soon be our brand new lobby connecting the two buildings together. This will be the place to grab a cup of coffee, stop by connection point for group or event information, or just hang out and talk with friends. We are coming down the home stretch. Kascon is still hopeful that they can be finished by the end of November! Stay tuned. More info coming on how you can help us finish strong!

Painting Progress

We began painting the North Building this week! So many of you have joined in and we've made great progress. It really is amazing how a coat of paint can transform a room.

Yesterday the Seneca Creek "swoosh" went up on the wall in what will be the future reception room. Many thanks to John O'Keefe who created and mounted it!

Another big accomplishment this week was the removal of the center column in our future auditorium. A new cross beam was set in place on the exterior to ensure the structural integrity of the roof after the removal of the center column. The column came down and the roof stayed in tact!

Lots to do in a Short Period of Time!

Most of the walls are in place and the space that used to house rows of offices is now a large auditorium. Even with concrete floors and unpainted drywall the space already feels warm and inviting. Kascon (our contractor) is moving right on schedule and they intend to be finished before the end of the year. That means it is still entirely possible that we could be worshipping in this space by Christmas! In order to make that happen, though, there are some things that we as a church have to do.

1) We'll need to receive at least $160,000 of the outstanding pledges by November 30.

If you were with us June 6^th when we launched construction, you may remember us saying that we had enough in our building fund to pay for this first phase of construction but we still needed funds to cover soft cost and finishes that are not included in our contract with Kascon. So, over the next four months, we will need at least $160,000 to pay for things like permit and inspection fees, builders-risk insurance, paint, carpet, tile, and a few critical pieces of IT and sound equipment. All of these items are necessary in order for us begin using the building for Sunday Services. (Note: To date we have approximately $700,000 in outstanding pledges. After paying for soft costs and finishes the remainder of the funds will be put towards finishing the children's area.)

2) We need to paint the entire North Building between Aug 18-26^th.

One of the ways we are holding down construction costs is by doing our own painting. We'll be painting between August 18th and August 26th. You can sign up to help online, or on Sunday morning. It's a big building but if we all work together we can get it done.

3) We need to move all of our offices to the North Building on Monday, Sept. 6^th.

Kascon will be finished with all the work in the North building by the first week in September. At that time, we will shift all of our offices over to the North building. From this date on we will be able to occupy everything in the North building except the Sancutary and the lower level elementary PowerHouse. Once our offices have been moved to the North side, Kascon will then begin construction on the South building to include a new double-wide stairway, adding a lobby floor, new restrooms, and a new second floor entrance.

There's lots to do in a short period of time so please get involved over the next several months! If we work together--everyone contributing something—then with God's help we will be in our building before year-end!

Picking Out Colors

Tricia Corman has graciously donated her interior design services absolutely free of charge! She has a incredible eye for style and color and is doing a fabulous job advising us in this area. This week we had to decide on paint colors because the walls will be ready to paint mid-august. We also picked out cabinet and countertop colors for the coffee bar in the lobby and the kitchenette in the green room.

It's Taking Shape

The framing and drywall is almost completely done throughout the north building. It's amazing how quickly work is progressing. The auditorium is really starting to take shape, making it easier to visualize us meeting here in the near future.