A Progress Report from Gillian Clark
Hey Folks,
Just to update you on all that is going on. We have been busy with the opening of the General Store and Post Office Tavern as many of you know. But we are also focused on completing the renovation at 7001 Carroll Avenue.
We completed the demolition of the space in December and much of the plumbing work began at that time. While our carpenter prepared to remove the skylights so that the space could have sufficient HVAC using the skylight openings, he discovered that some portions of the roof needed to be repaired. There were also some leaks uncovered. This has added increased costs and delays as I have written to many of you who have inquired.
As is often the case in buildings of this age, once you remove all that the previous occupants added on, you find a costly can of worms. We have had the roof repaired as much as makes sense right now. The remaining repairs will be completed once the HVAC system has been installed. We have also found that the water and electric service for many of the building's tenants go through our space. It has been complicated and has taken some extra work to make sure that the phone, electric and sewer lines are all doing what they are supposed to be doing.
We have been approved for our building permit and for WSSC (plumbing), so we are really read to go and feel that with a solid three months we can be ready to move the equipment and furniture in. However, the original lender for the project, Colombo Bank, is concerned that the construction issues that have arisen have resulted in the project being over budget. In February, they requested a review of the project and several meetings with our project manager. We believe that we are close to satisfying the bank's needs (they are in the midst of a merger and need to make sure all of the loans in their files are going to work out) and close to getting the additional financing to finish the project.
The bad news is that we are experiencing considerable delays. The good news is that we are very close to getting back on track and are happy to report that the landlord is being very cooperative and working with us to see the project through. We are hoping to be open in October.
--Gillian
(reprinted from May 5, 2009 email)
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