Sprinklers! & Adult Gathering Space

We've got fire suppression sprinklers going in!  

While I admit that doesn't sound too exciting- and that we have no plans on ever using them- this does represent a crucial phase of our renovation process.  Especially since we won't get our Occupancy Permit without them.  

This week also saw the drywall work continue as the crews came back to tape and mud. Needless to say the space is looking MUCH different.  As our designer said, "It actually is starting to look like a building again- instead of a skeleton."  I agree.

Here are a couple of shots of our main adult gathering space. This is where our adults will come together on Sundays to connect with God and each other.  The space should hold about 250 chairs- which gives us room to grow, but should also help us maintain a personal, intimate feel.  

Here's a view looking down from the 2nd story loft.

A floor view from the back of the space.

Of course, this area will get plenty of use beyond Sunday mornings.  Our teens will use it on Fridays for the Night Life Cafe.  Different groups in CNX will have access when they need it. And since we're planning on sharing this facility with our neighbors, we envision groups outside of CNX making use of it too.  After all, God didn't bless us with this building just to keep it to ourselves!

Check back next week for a peek inside our kid's areas.

Snow? No problem!

The snow may have closed schools and kept most of us home for a couple of days, but plenty of work got done at our future facility this week.

For starters, we've got a new bike rack.

This was required by code, but could serve us well in an area that has a lot of foot and bike traffic. So feel free to bike in on Sundays. You'll save gas $ and get some exercise!

The drywall crews were also working hard this week. As you can see below, a little drywall makes things look radically different.

The High School side of the teen space pre-drywall

Same area with drywall

The back wall of the main adult gathering space

Same wall today- reverse view

The front walls in the adult gathering space.

Front walls w/drywall (view from 2nd story loft)

Please keep praying. It's working!

You Gotta Have It

Some parts of a building project are exciting- watching walls go up, seeing spaces defined, choosing colors, etc. Other phases are essential- but not much to look at. That's the kind of work that took place this past week as the renovations of our future space moved onward.

POWER
The electrical work continued and we passed our first electrical inspection. With the new ramps poured last week, the workers were able to bring in a lift to start working on the second story wiring.


SAFETY
We're making changes to the building to ensure that our new space is safe for everyone. To that end we're installing fire suppression sprinklers and a new fire alarm. Progress was made on both of these items this week. Here are a couple of shots of some excavation that is happening to bring water pipes into the building to feed the sprinklers.

Digging up the parking lot and sidewalk.

The old men's locker room is being re-purposed to serve as the sprinkler riser room. New exterior doors will provide access to this area.

PRAY
As of today the project is still slightly ahead of schedule. If you're willing, please join us in praying for this work and the space. Here are some things you might ask God for:

• That we’ll stay on schedule.
• That our workers will stay safe.
• That we’ll have a smooth inspection process.
• That we'll have the finances needed to finish and use the new space in ways that help people and honor God.
  
• That God will prepare us for all of the new opportunities this space will give us to love and serve people.
• That God will be preparing new folks who will get involved with our faith community after we move to this space.

Be sure to check back next week for another update

Roof, Restrooms & Ramps

The work has rolled on this week at our future meeting space.  As of today we're slightly ahead of schedule.  Please pray that this will continue and that we'll have a relatively easy inspection process.  We're ready to get in there, begin the next phase of our life together and start getting to know our neighbors and learning how we can best love and serve them.

Here are a few of the areas of the building where we saw progress this week:

ROOF

A good portion of the roof on the building was compromised by water leaks and irreparable. Fortunately we were able to obtain a very reasonable bid for replacement and the workers are about half way done removing the old roof and installing the new one.  

Off with the old.

RESTROOMS

The bathrooms in our new space will be a bit unique.  Since the bldg used to house a health club we've actually got locker rooms (sans lockers) that have bathrooms in them.  So we've made a couple of changes to try and maximize space and minimize expenses- all the while giving everyone a place to potty.  In the men's room for example we've closed the original entrance and created a new one by removing one of the showers.  Why?  it allowed us to double the space in our infant nursery.  But more on that later. 

The new way in to the men's room.

A shower becomes an entrance.

RAMPS

A healthy portion of the cost to renovate the building goes toward updating it up to meet current codes.  This week two concrete handicap accessible ramps were formed and poured to allow our friends in wheelchairs (and the rest of us) to be able to enter and exit the building in multiple ways.  These new ramps both lead to doors in the back corners of the building.  So if you don't get a parking place up front, don't sweat it.  A door will be close by.

The back left corner of the building.  Steps lead into the main adult area.

One turn at the bottom of this ramp will put you in the middle of the main adult area.

Thanks again for your interest in this project.  Please keep praying for it/us and checking back for status updates.  And if you want to come hang out with our community before we move to the new space we're meeting on Sundays @ 10:45 HERE.

Space Profile: The Teen Space

Our church has a heart for teens. And for a community our size, we've been able to impact a good number of them. Early last year we'd have about 5o adults show up on Sunday mornings. At the same time we were connected to about 50 middle and high school students between the Nite Life Cafe and our Sunday morning teen gathering. So when we looked for a new space it was important to us to have room for teens. (See where this is headed?)

Our new building was a health club in a previous life. At some point the owners added a 2nd story to accommodate an aerobics room. While our new facility will be multi-purpose and multi-functional, this is the area we're designating as student space. Here are a couple of panoramic looks at the nearly 1800 square foot room:



This is the spot where our middle and high students will gather on Sunday mornings, play video games on Friday nights at the Nite Life Cafe and hang out at other times. With the recent addition of a couple of great student ministry interns (hey John & Lindsay!) we're now offering unique groups for middle and high school students. This room is being divided to create spaces for each group. Here are a few shots of the framing:

A full view of the room:

The middle school area:

The high school area:

The 2nd story also has a great open loft area:

This is where all the cardio machines used to sit. While most of us could use a good treadmill session, we're thinking this area will be better used as a space for people (teens and adults) to connect with each other. (Think comfy seats, a pool table, etc.)

When we moved our Sunday morning gatherings over to Delightful Inspirations early in the fall it gave our church room to grow as a whole. However, it also meant that our teens had to temporarily give up their weekly Friday night hang out (Nite Life Cafe). While we appreciate their ability to be flexible and to think of the whole church, we're excited to give our students tons more space to get back to this vibrant ministry and to dream about other ways to help other teens connect with God.

Want to know more about our ministry to middle & high school students? Start HERE.

Space Profile: The Welcome Area

This week saw a lot of framing happening in our new building. It is exciting to see the different spaces getting defined as the walls go up. Of course, at this point the walls consist of metal studs (see the pic on left for an example). So you still have to use your imagination a bit. Drywall will happen towards the end of the renovation process.

In the weeks ahead we'll be filling you in more and more on the new facility. When it gets safe to do so, we'll have an open house and let you wander around and get a feel for things. For now, we'll feature different areas of the building on this blog and give you a sense of how they might be used. This week we'll focus on the Welcome Area (for lack of a better name).

We've had a bunch of people visit Connections this past year. Many of them have commented on the comfortable, community atmosphere they experienced. To me (Fred) this is a reflection of who we are as a people. Although walls and counters won't welcome anyone on their own, this part of our new building will help us connect people in a couple of different ways. Keep in mind that all cosmetic changes will come later.

As you enter the front door of the building you'll find the kid's classes on your right and left. They aren't pictured in this shot but would be on either side of what you see here. The adult and teen spaces will be straight ahead in the 2 story area you see in the background of this shot. (More on all of these areas later.) The Welcome Area is a central point for all groups and is just ahead on your left where you see the purple counter.


This counter will likely serve as a natural information or check in point for visitors and regulars- both on Sundays and as we open up the building to our neighbors during the week.


Walk past the info/check-in counter and you'll see the back side of the welcome area. This is where our coffee and snacks will end up- which means most of us will be stopping by this spot regularly and will be in a friendlier mood after we do so.


The view below is what you'd see if you walked past the counter into the area where our adults will gather on Sundays and looked back. The metal framing above the counter is for a curved wall that will hold lighting for this area, add some height and help with the acoustics of the space. You can also see the front doors and entrance hallway to the left.


Check back next week for a glimpse into another part of this great space God has provided for us.

Construction Zone & Open House

We are very excited about the progress taking place at the new church space. We realize that many others are anxious to see the space.

In the next few weeks we hope to have a time where we can give tours of the facility while it is under renovation. However, for safety and other reasons, please don't go inside the building unless you need to for ministry reasons and have cleared it with Fred or Shane.