Building Project

Report from Provisional Building Committee

What a blessed congregation we are when we see how far our building program has come. We stand truly amazed at God's provision! If we, as a Building Committee or as a congregation, could have had our own way, we would have had construction start a year ago, but this was not in the Lord's timing, which is always perfect. During this time of delay we have learned much patience, to trust the Lord in all things and to be secure in what His timing is for the events of life.

At last it appears that we are at the point at which more visible things are starting to happen.

Site work is now underway. The widening of Dallas Highway and Midway Road funded through Cobb County's SPLOST intersection improvement program should begin very soon. In conjunction with construction beginning, a ground-breaking ceremony was held after the 11:00 a.m. worship service on Sunday, May 6, 2007. This ground breaking occurred on the day of the 94th annual Memorial Day Celebration, a day that the saints who have preceded us are remembered. This seemed to be a very fitting time to recognize those who have contributed to the life of our church in times past and now to look forward to the expansion of ministry and facilities for the future.

The construction of the new sanctuary and fellowship hall will take approximately 18 months and will cause some inconvenience as far as facilities usage, parking and rerouting of pedestrian and vehicular traffic. This will be a time calling for patience and understanding with construction related inconvenience and for perseverance in our commitment to attendance of church services.

At present, the "all in" cost of the building program which includes the building and site development costs, demolition, asbestos abatement, furniture and fixtures, pipe organ, landscaping, construction period interest and a contingency of $560,000 is $10.6 million. This is $1.2 million more than the initial projection of $9.4 million presented to the congregation in November 2005. The escalation in cost of building materials, primarily steel, cement and petroleum based products account for the great majority of this increase. Many and varied cost saving measures and value engineering have been utilized to keep the cost to the $10.6 million amount. This projected cost is based upon the children and youth areas of the first floor not being completely finished nor furnished at the present time. While delaying the finishing of these areas is primarily due to financial constraints, such delay allows better evaluation of the anticipated space requirements for children and youth ministries. Our church has been blessed by the rapid growth of members with young families, and therefore due care will be taken to be certain that our completed space adequately accommodates their needs. Both space and financial considerations can be better addressed as construction progresses. These ministry needs will be evaluated by the Building and Finance Committees in consultation with the Session to address the appropriate space for specific ministries.

The approval given to the building program in November 2005 was for an estimated cost of $9.4 million; however, the borrowing was for an amount not to exceed $5.5 million. The Finance Committee's negotiation for acceptable financing is progressing well and even with the estimated cost of the building program exceeding the original estimate by $1.2 million the amount of borrowing will not exceed the $5.5 million authorized by the congregation.

This is indeed an exciting time for our church, the opportunity for expanded ministry in our community and for seeing the name of Christ upheld and proclaimed through the expanded facilities. Please pray for this program and for your Building and Finance Committees as they continue to labor in the tasks with which they have been charged.

May all of the glory be to our Lord.