1997

September 1997

The 1997 Long-Range Plan is accepted by the Session, calling for a doubling of the church size and the hiring of an architect to design an expanded campus.

1998-1999

April 1999

The Yorkminster congregation votes to purchase 4.8 acres of property to the immediate south of the original campus. The Campus Improvements Committee made a presentation (PDF, 3.1M) recommending purchase.

May 1999

The original set of prioritized requirements for what will become the Fellowship Center are compiled by the new Campus Improvements Committee. Design work then begins with architect David Bugin.

October 1999

A cost estimate is obtained from a reputable local general contractor stating a 31,500 sq. ft. "family life center" should be able to be built for $ 2,298,000, plus $ 500,000 - $ 600,000 for site work. It also estimate the cost of bringing the existing 11,000 sq. ft. facility up to code at $ 761,000.

2000-2001

The project is on hold following the departure of pastor Dr. John Sadler and awaiting the call to our church of co-pastors Jenny and Feild Russell in July 2001.

2002

November 2002

The Yorkminster congregation votes to purchase 2.67 acre property to north (Meredith/Woods). The Campus Improvements Committee made a presentation (PDF, 832K) recommending purchase.

2003

February 2003

The Yorkminster congregation votes to purchase 2.4 acres of property to the south (previously known as the "optioned" parcel) to provide for future church growth. This land is not included in any campus improvements yet planned.

April 2003

Two informational meetings, on the 6th and 9th of April, were held in the old fellowship hall to unveil the schematic floor plan of a 28,700 sq. ft. facility.
Also in April, the Meredith/Woods property to the north of the existing campus was purchased.

August 2003

Initial elevation drawings provided for [original, now abandoned] Fellowship Center.

October 2003

At the capital campaign kick-off dinner at Seaford Baptist Church on October 30, 2003, a set of colorized elevation drawings were unveiled by Charlie Cunningham, Capital Fund Campaign co-chair, and Bruce Jackson of the Campus Improvements Committee. [This is the original preliminary design that proved too expensive.]

2004

April 2004

The Meredith/Woods house next door was demolished to make way for an eventual north exit.

May 2004

A Preliminary Design Review of the 33,100 sq. ft. building is held with members of the various subcommittees in attendance.

August 2004

A planned August congregational meeting to decide to proceed with 33,100 sq. ft. building is canceled after FISC committee recommends $ 3.1M cap on new building, pending cost estimates from a general contractor. A "church at work" announcement at both August 29th services mentions a funding gap and asks for increased donations.

October 2004

O. K. James Construction of Williamsburg is chosen as project's general contractor for "design/build" approach.

November 2004

General contractor provides preliminary estimate of project at over $ 6 million, in large part due to ambitious site plan. Plans for congregational vote in December are shelved pending redesign.

December 2004

At a congregational meeting after the December 8th fellowship dinner, FISC and CIC explain cost escalation problem to interested members [CIC presentation available here (PDF, 1.6 MB)]

2005

February 2005

The Session approves new top-level requirements in general, which are to be refined by the Campus Improvements Committee and will provide direction to the architect.

March 2005

A brief status report was given at both Easter services: the original building layout and site improvements proved too expensive; a reduced building redesign is underway; it will be on a separate parcel to save approx. $ 1 M but may be connected to existing facility.

April 2005

Two Session meetings this month led to a decision regarding placement of the smaller Fellowship Center relative to the existing facility. It was agreed to place the buildings in close proximity without a drive aisle between them. It was also decided, in light of new information indicating the north campus exit could be deferred, to put that reserve amount into the building itself.

An updated status report (PDF, 636 KB) was briefed to the incoming class of church officers (elders and deacons).

A meeting was held between representatives of the church, our architect and the general contractor to develop a plan and schedule for proceeding on new building design.

May 2005

At the May Session meeting a modified requirements list was referred to an ad-hoc subcommittee for special consideration; permission to hire a new architect was approved as was permission to relocate the north property line to create a separate parcel south of the present church. Meetings with the new architect got underway; he started a new preliminary design to meet our new draft requirements on May 19. An updated traffic study (PDF, 3.4 MB) was purchased. A preliminary campus layout was received for approval from the site engineering firm.

June 2005

The architect and CIC have held meetings with most CIC subcommittees, including Kitchen, Recreation, Landscape, Architectural, and Interior Design. The Session approved top-level requirements for the building on June 13. We signed a contract with the architect, Mr. Wm. Henry Harris, III to develop final design drawings, after review by the Negotiating subcommittee. The building budget was closely scrutinized, and a financing plan was perfected by the Financial Study Committee.

July 2005

Preliminary design of the building was completed and reviewed by Landscaping, Mechanical Systems, Stage, lighting and Sound, and Interior Decor, and the Session (on 11 July). Several design details were in negotiations with the builder including height of the roof, pitch of the roof, type of heating, three- or four-wall brick veneer, and floor covering in the main hall. Two presentations were given to the congregation at a lunch meeting of about 160 people in the existing Fellowship Hall; they are available for here.

August 2005

Congregational approval to proceed (actually, to borrow the money necessary to proceed) was obtained on August 7th. Our site plan was submitted to the County, initially on August 18th but, due to new County filing requirements, not officially accepted until additional material was submitted on August 30th.

The Session approved minor changes to the building requirements document on August 8th. Final design of the building was underway, and the contractor was given approval to purchase long-lead items. Detailed design of the kitchen was begun.

September 2005

Design of the building continued with attention on the kitchen, floors, location of switches, telephones, and network connections; decisions were reached regarding brick, roof and trim colors.

We received a conditional approval for our site plan on Sept. 21 but with 18 pages of comments and changes back from various County and State agencies. Most of the next few weeks were spent trying to address these issues.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita caused damage to the Gulf Coast states, ensuring an increased cost of materials and transportation; in addition, an increase in the Federal Reserve prime rate has led to an increased cost of money. Overall, we expect the cost of the project to be 10 % above what we were estimating in August.

October 2005

Things really started to cook in October: we received a draft contract that was 7-8% above original estimates, leading to a total project cost close to $ 3.5 million. However, the Session agreed to proceed with the project on October 10th when the Financial Study Committee found that we could still afford the project and keep the loan under the $ 3.1 million ceiling set by the Congregation if we plan to sell the south part of the Rollins parcel (the "optioned parcel") before 2010. In the meantime, improved financial circumstances may allow us to hang on to this property.

One of the County requirements requires an agreement between ourselves and ourselves, allowing ourselves to use part of the existing parking lot when we have a function in the new Fellowship Center.

The re-submittal of requisite paperwork to seek both a land disturbance permit and site plan approval was complete on October 14th. A tentative date for ground-breaking was set for November 13th after the 10:45 worship service.

A flurry of activity to tie up loose ends wrapped up October, including a day-long building plans review. A surety was posted with the County to guarantee the drainage system would be installed to County expectations. A Storm water Management permit was issued by the State for the project.

November 2005

Final site approval (with conditions) was received November 4th; a $ 2.9 million construction contract was signed on November 7th; the pre-construction meeting was held with the County on November 10th and the land disturbance permit was issued; ground-breaking was held on November 13th; clearing activities were halted before they started on November 17th by County officials, requiring the drainage pond to be completed before any trees come down. A waterline extension agreement was applied for with Newport News Waterworks. The first change order, totaling $ 77,000, was issued to address County, Waterworks, structural, and HVAC design changes. Drainage pipes were delivered Nov 29th.

December 2005

Clearing for the pond and driveway began Dec. 7th; the office trailer was installed Dec. 8th. Newport News Waterworks gave approval for the water line installation. Kitchen plans were firmed up and an improved cost estimate for the kitchen was developed. Drainage pond excavation began Dec. 19th, building footprint excavation began three days later upon County approval before work stopped for the holidays.

2006

January 2006

Considerable progress: the drainage pond was finished, drainage lines installed, and the lot cleared of trees. The footprint for the building had to have considerable undercut (soil removal) and sand was brought in to bring the slab up to the desired level. Concrete for the slab foundation piers was poured. Forms for the footers were installed and conduit to allow power, plumbing and communications lines under the slab were wired in place. A building permit was obtained. The construction trailer was moved to the back of the parking lot and the lot was partly remarked to provide driveway access. Two samples of brick and mortar were provided for review.

February 2006

Preparation for pouring the building slab occupied most of the month, during which we had little precipitation. The first concrete was poured for piers near the center of the building. Footers have been formed up and conduits placed to allow power, plumbing and communications lines to be run under the slab once it's poured. The drain pipes have been installed under the present driveway but need to be tied into the current roof drain. The structural steel was delivered on Feb. 27th.

March 2006

The slab was poured on March 2nd; we have a whole page of pictures here. Cinder block walls for the multipurpose room were first placed on March 6th; steel started up on March 13th. The first exterior bricks were laid on March 27th. The first part of the roof was installed on March 29th.

April 2006

Construction accelerated in April, with the new driveway and parking lots and associate curbing, followed by water line installation and fire hydrants, going in ahead of schedule. The church was approached by County officials regarding a utility easement along the southern property. The roof installation neared completion and brick started going up over insulation. Final plans for landscaping were made. An expanded telephone network was designed and bids sought from two vendors. Electrical rough-in began.

May 2006

The Kitchen subcommittee met to prioritize the initial list of equipment to install. The gas line was installed. The roof was completed and most of the brickwork was finished except the front entrance. Drywall installation began on the inside, as did HVAC, electrical and plumbing rough-in. The sprinkler system installation began.

June 2006

An open house on June 4th was held on June 4th in conjunction with the spring festival. See pictures here.

The entrance doors, gutters, curbing, overhead partition track, exterior door pads and doors were installed. A sound system was evaluated and ordered. A contribution has been received for the chandelier. Mud and tape of drywall commenced. Electricity was turned on and the air conditioning units were tested. The Construction Oversight team paid a visit to a kitchen equipment vendor in Richmond. The kitchen subcommittee met to review and prioritize the list of equipment. See the result here. The Landscaping committee decided to not recruit volunteers to plant trees, bushes and shrubs. A decision to proceed with installation of basketball goals was made.

July 2006

The parking lot lights were installed, the concrete divider on the entrance drive was removed (entrance lane too small). Tile floors in the restrooms were installed. The ceiling gridwork was installed. All building exterior elements were completed. A set of photos from July 27 of the interior are here.

August 2006

The old driveway was closed and the new one (with gravel surface) was opened on August 13. The entrance chandelier was installed on August 16. Paving sarted on August 17, as did installation of the basketball goals. Exterior lights came on at night, too. Paving was completed by August 26, including parking stripes. The suspended ceiling tiles were installed; final painting and grading were underway at the end of the month. Chair and table selections were being considered by the CIC committee.

September 2006

An irrigation well was installed on the 7th; the cornerstone was laid on the 10th; the tile floor in the commons was installed on the 15th; tables and chairs were ordered; sports flooring was installed on the 18th; final grading and seeding occurred; kitchen equipment arrived; lines were painted for the basketball and volleyball courts on the 22nd; plans were made for a new building shower.

October 2006

The building was declared 'substantially complete' on the 6th and turned over to the church by the contractor. The last shipment of kitchen equipment arrived the same day. An icemaker was donated. Irrigation lines were installed. Landscaping began on the 17th. The wheelchair lift was installed. A new drain was installed on the highway to satisfy VDOT concerns. A building shower was held on October 25th and raised $ 15,000 for linens, dishes, flatware and glassware. Communications lines were installed between the two facilities by volunteers led by Tom B. on the 26th; the telephone extensions were installed and activated on the 30th.

November 2006

On November 7, 2006, a Conditional Certificate of Occupancy was issued for the new building by York County officials. The 2007-2009 Capital Campaign has concluded; pledges in totaling $ 1,246,802 have been received, exceeding the target of $ 1.1 million by 13%. We're now projected a loan repayment in 18 years.

December 2006

We were still operating on a Conditional Certificate of Occupancy due to the deferral of the required acquatic plants for the settlement pond that now must wait for warmer weather. We held a Christmas Pageant Mayhem in Bethelhem the evening of December 10th, our first monthly Fellowship Dinner in the main hall on December 13th, and held our first worship service in the new building on December 17 when the combined choirs celebrated with Vivaldi's Gloria at a single service at 10:45 AM.
We suffered a casualty to the new facility on December 2nd when a vehicle driven by a student driver ran into the side of the Commons. Repairs awaited the end of the holidays.

January 2007

The dedication of the new building was held on the evening of January 20, 2007. Nearly 400 people enjoyed a beef brisket dinner, served by the youth of the church, and a short program officiated by Feild and Jenny Russell and CIC co-chairs Bill Roberts and Bruce Jackson. Guests included Harry Harris, our architect and Prebytery of Eastern Virginia general presbyter Richard Short, associate prebyter Mary Newbern-Williams, PEVA stated clerk Donald Bickhart, and former YPC pastor John Sadler. Repairs to the building were completed just that week, except for replacement of the refigeration compressors.

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