The foundation is the FOUNDATION

I'm still waiting for final bids to come in on the excavation and structural repair. I am hoping to be able to pick a bidder in the next two weeks and begin work in early September. If all goes well, Mike Veeder at Kool-Temp will be able to install my heating system in a nice, new and most importantly, DRY basement in October just as the colder weather hits upstate New York.

In the meantime, we keep doing what we can. One thing I did was get Poison Ivy all over my arms. Here's what happened this week.

David ripped out the kitchen floor.

I started to clean up the "sidewalk" on the North side of the Church which is how I contracted said Poison Ivy.

I have finally come to the sad conclusion that there is really no way I can keep the large spruce out front and have the heavy machinery come up onto the property. So I'll be making an appointment with LB Tree Service to have it cut down and the wood hauled away (spruce isn't so great for burning).

And this is why I do it all: the view from what will be the extended deck on the North side of the Church. Coxsackie village buildings bathed in sunset light with the Hudson in the background. One day I'll be sitting out on that deck with my feet up!

Keeping expectations realistic

William Vincent came to the Church this past weekend and soaked in the space and the light. He and my builder, David Hunt, spoke at length about the stairs to the upstairs lofts. Everyone's first desire is to make a bridge between the two second floor lofts but it is a tricky proposition because there are two strategically placed tie-rods that make the idea seem somewhat impossible. The tie-rods are kind of keeping the sides of the church upright so you can't f*ck around with them.

Here's a photo of the tie-rods. They have been boxed in to look like beams. 

I'm taking the wood off and leaving them exposed. Here's what the rod looks like when exposed.

William sent his first set of sketches to me and I think that he is close to figuring out how to connect the two spaces with a bridge. It's exciting to have a talented and tenacious architect.

We're still working on getting bids from various structural foundation repair people. One bid was super high and totally overkill. William says that is what will happen when they really don't want to bother with the job. I know that the site presents some really tricky problems but I have faith that we will find the right person for the job. I'm meeting with Tom at Heritage Masonry on Saturday and David will meet with Dave from Woodford Brothers on Wednesday morning. I'm both patient and hopeful. The foundation is just that, the FOUNDATION, so it needs to be done well and correctly. 

Here's what happened at the church this week:

William wondered why the second floor lofts had a dropped ceilings and why they didn't go right up to the peak. That's an immediate cue for David to climb a ladder and bash a little hole in the wall so they could see what's up there. I always get a little shiver when the stuff gets bashed up but I have to admit that it would be nice to see the gable. When they peered in with a flashlight it they felt that it could be done. Here's their handiwork:

In what was probably the hottest couple of weekends I can recall, I had the brilliant idea of uncovering the slate sidewalk. I nearly passed out from heat stroke and now I know to keep lots of water on hand while doing that kind of work. Here are the before and after:

It will be slow going until we can get the foundation work happening. There's not much more we can do until that is addressed. 

As I said, realistic expectations, faith and patience!

Steadying My Breath and Being Patient

Still waiting for bids. There are a lot of elements to this foundation repair. Excavation, concrete pouring, stump removal, the assurance that once the stumps are pulled the foundation wall will collapse so that needs to be shored up before anything starts, backhoes, diggers, grading. It goes on and on.
Here is the basement. It's right out of The Silence of the Lambs but it will be much nicer once we've done the foundation repair and HVAC work.

And here's a photo that made me realize that this sh*t was DEEP.

This is a boulder in my crawlspace that came loose from the mother rock because water had built up behind it and the pressure propelled it towards the foundation wall where it is nudging against. Someone has to get in there and break it up. I wouldn't get into the crawlspace with a full on hazmat suit so this one goes to the best bid and person for the job. I meet with two other foundation repair people this weekend and then wait for the bids and hope for the best.

In the meantime, I do what I can:

I removed the "Koi Pond Surround" (aptly named by Deb Parker) underneath the wood stove. I really love the sledgehammer and I enjoyed seeing the brick go. It seems much more seamless now.

I removed years of brush and dead leaves from the front of the house and discovered a nice slate sidewalk and a little stone wall that could use some help. I will work on uncovering the rest of the side walk this weekend.

Mike Veeder, my HVAC guy, removed the old furnace, tanks and baseboard. We asked him to leave us the copper tubing so we can make a little money scrapping it. Every bit helps.

I finally set up a little space with an aerobed so I can start staying there next week. I am very much looking forward to living there while we renovate (knowing I have a few places to run to when I can't take it anymore!)

Coming up this weekend: my architect, William Vincent, will be paying his first site visit. We should receive our first foundation repair bid and I should be freaking out. Everything is happening right on schedule.

And finally, this sweet little number is for sale right up the street from me. C'mon up and be my neighbor!!!!

Waiting for Bids

I have limited financial resources but at least I have time. I have a place to live in NYC and my friend Deb has graciously let me stay in her guest room while I'm upstate working on the church. Right now we are waiting for an estimate to do the foundation work which is the most difficult and costly aspect of the renovation. Due to the site, there are some tricky maneuvers and I still have no idea how we are going to get the maple tree stumps out of the ground and install a curtain drain. This is where you let go, leave it to professionals and take a deep breath when you open your checkbook. 

Due to the slope of the land all the water and moisture has been seeping into to the south side of the church. Here's a photo of the southwest corner and you can see why we have to deal with the foundation.

This past weekend I primed some of the walls, mostly because there wasn't much else to do and I felt that it would help cleanse my palate of those odd colors and the even odder "mural".
Here is the "now you see it, now you don't".

That was very satisfying.

Back In Action

We submitted a demolition plan to our building inspector and received a permit yesterday. My builder, David, goes on vacation today for a week but we were able to get the electric turned on and the toilet working so I can start to spend more time there. The plumbing pipes are a mess and need to be completely replaced so we couldn't get any running water in the sinks. One step at a time, one step at a time.
It was interesting to get a "stop work" order. I kind of wish they issued those in LIFE because it forced me to sit back for a minute and think about how I want to live in the space.
I met with my architect last night. At first I thought I wouldn't need an architect, that David and I could figure out everything, but I realize that was unduly optimistic. So I called upon the talents of William Vincent who will be working with us on the renovation. William is a friend, a southern gentleman and a talented architect with the firm of Todd Williams-Billie Tsien. I'm excited about this client-builder-architect triumvirate!
Here's what we have gotten done so far:

We excavated the seven maple trees and cleared the south side of the house from all the debris.

We have firewood to offer to the neighbors.

We took down the chimney on the east wall with the deck.

We stacked the bricks in anticipation of a way to repurpose them. William was very happy about this.

So weeks One and Two were very productive. The house is now just about ready to get the foundation work that it needs. This is the biggest and costliest aspect to the renovation. And I am getting an education that I would have never thought possible on foundation construction!