2020 RENOVATIONS UPDATES

Given increasing interest in the progress and purpose of renovations to the 207 Pittsboro St property, updates will be posted here on the website, in the St. Anthony Hall group on Facebook, and via the monks' listserv.

Renovation update - posting here per motion passed at SAANC BOD conference call in January. I'm posting on behalf of Matt Wood who would normally be posting this update to the communication channels. :) Many thanks to Ace Lane who worked diligently to compile this update. This edited version hits the highlights for public consumption here.

About the Renovations Committee
The full description of the Renovations Committee is here. This document includes our mission statement, our goals, full descriptions of the roles of each committee member, and info on taking on new committee members.

We will alert the chapter and SAANC if we majorly change how duties are delegated.

All members of the renovations committee can be contacted at renovations [at] stanthonync [dot] org.

The Renovations committee:

Ace Lane (“Number 1”, WWPP)
Joy Jennings (President of SAANC)
Rachel Blythe

Update on Recent Committee Actions

December 31, 2020

BSSA, BSSA, as we leave 2020 in the dust and venture into what, hopefully, will be a joyous and less chaotic 2021, SAANC has the final renovation update for 2020!

Due to issues with the vault and the need for a visit from a safecracker, we also realized the need to have someone take a look at some structural damage that appeared to have been caused by the vault and its weight.

We had a structural engineer from EEI Engineering examine The Hall and provide some recommendations on how to prevent future damage to the property. The final report will be available on request from renovations@stanthonync.org.

Keycard readers have been installed on 2 of our external doors, as a part of our plans to enhance security for our members. SAANC will be working with the undergrads on the use of the system and a security plan going forward for access to the Hall.

We look forward to providing more updates in the new year. Until then, wishing a happy and healthy 2021 all brothers, sisters, and siblings all. And always with LITB.

August 10, 2020

BSSA,

Got questions about COVID policy or hall money stuff? Email SAANC president Sis. Joy Jennings at president@stanthonync.org.

Got any non-financial renovations questions? Email renovations committee at renovations@stanthonync.org

Renovations committee is taking on some COVID-related duties.

In the coming months, hall building visitation will be strictly limited to officers, contractors, and advisors (such as our architect). COVID-related duties specifically delegated to the renovations committee include posting the house occupancy at every entrance (which is ten people), preparing a visitation log, and setting up bountiful hand sanitizer. While our contractors will bring their own hygienic supplies, we will keep a small supply stocked for them. Bro. Ace Lane will get this all together in the coming week.

For a full list of duties SAANC has set out for COVID preparedness, please read Sister Joy Jennings’s SAANC President Officer Report from the July 12th SAANC BOD meeting. These items are required by the Chapel Hill Department of Public Health, which has been put in charge of managing Greek housing safety. For updates on progress on any of those items, please ask Sis. Joy Jennings. 

Construction Developments

• The town of Chapel Hill Historic Council approved our new roof project on July 14th, so we have the all-clear to get going on that.
• Most of our contracting action has been held up because our architect has been on vacation for a few weeks. She is supposed to return to town this week. We will soon start working as a team with her and with our general contractor.
• The back deck has been stained, and damaged parts of the wood have been repaired.

We are establishing relationships with some other key partners.

• Using services from “The Germinator” was the one (slighly imperative) suggestion from Greek affairs, so we will be using them on a bi-monthly (or thereabouts) basis to perform antimicrobial surface disinfecting. 
• We will be hiring cleaners to clear and clean the kitchen, which is still full of food and dishes. We are hiring professionals and will not be using volunteers because professionals are better prepared to protect themselves from potential sickness on site. If by chance these professionals do get sick, they have insurance through their work and will be able to seek compensation from their company, while a volunteer would simply be out of luck.
• We are consulting a “decorator,” whose trade is not as superficial as the title suggests. She is helping us decide on materials and fixtures that fit our needs best and are most environmentally friendly. For example, she has helped us find a ceramic tile that fits our flooring needs for extremely high durability, ease of cleaning, and accessible repair if something extreme occurs. 

Siblings joining the committee’s efforts

Sis. Rachel Blythe is joining the committee efforts!

Also, Sis. Joy Jennings is forming a “disaster committee” as an offshoot of renovations that will find ways to prepare for situations such as flooding. In the case of flooding, we are looking to find ways to repair the house’s exterior to prevent the current of water into the DT.  We will also create conditions in the vault that will prevent any damage if flooding still occurs. VP of Legacy Bro. Michael Williams has agreed to help us with vault planning.

Drones

Thank you to Bro. Matt Wood, who took some drone pictures and footage of the roof for a future “before” and “after” project. We have a brother with a drone!

YITB,
The Renovations Committee

July 2, 2020

Interior Renovations Progress We have found a local architect and a general contractor who will work together toward our renovation goals. Bro. Ace Lane has been gleefully removing the obsolete baseboard radiator system at the Hall. On June 28th, Bro. Lane and Bro. Allman teamed up to finish the deconstruction of the radiators and are now moving to tear out the waterlogged fibreboard from behind the radiators. Bro. Lane is looking for a buyer for the scrap metal in the old radiators or another method to recycle them responsibly.

Renovations Funding Bill Waring called a BOD meeting on May 7th, 2020, during which the board gave approval to apply for a $50k low-interest loan being offered by National. Our application was approved, and the funds were deposited in our operations account on May 15th. At a Zoom meeting on June 24, 2020 the BOD gave approval for all funds currently available to be used for the renovation project.

Exterior Renovations Progress

Funds from our Operational account have already been put to use on hiring a team of professional landscapers, coordinated by Sis. Joy Jennings, to get our yards and parking lot in order and maintain them in perpetuity. Our landscapers have already removed two dead trees, a large amount of brush and bamboo and have chopped away dangerously low-hanging tree branches. Sis. Jennings coordinated the donation of abandoned bikes to the Special Olympics. Our landscapers are also going to re-stain and thereby weather-proof our deck and frat bench. They are maintaining the property weekly during the growing season and then their visits shift to meet the expected seasonal demands for planting shrubs and flowers, grass seeding and weed control. Plans are underway to install a set of security cameras to protect the property while it is unoccupied. 

Scheduling While this will come as a disappointment to many of us at Xi, due to the global pandemic National has chosen to take responsibility for GC 2021, including the planning, scheduling, inviting and location. We will be hosting the 176th GC in January of 2023.

Renovations Goals Our SAANC president, Sis. Joy Jennings, has articulated some tangible goals for our renovations. We are going to officially contract services in accordance with our bylaws for work to be scheduled to begin as soon as we are able so we can take advantage of the house and property already being closed. What is being described seems more like a timeline than goals because the only goal of the renovations committee is to facilitate the completion of capital improvements within its agency to do so. We still plan to do the project in the phases previously described. Generally, this breaks down to a new metal roof, the upstairs and outside first with the remaining work downstairs to be done as funding permits.

Access Limited to the Building and Grounds Please understand that until renovations are complete the building, parking lot and yards will remain closed except for those working on the renovation. This is being done to meet insurance requirements and to expedite the renovation process which will involve moving heavy equipment, subcontractors’ vehicles and construction materials through the parking lot.

Thank You We would like to extend a Delta Psi to Bro. Lane, Bro. Allman and Bro. Chris Pendergrass, who took his own time to come to the Hall and personally mow the lawn twice during the period of quarantine before we hired landscapers.

May 13, 2020

On Wednesday, May 6th, Bro. David Joyner (chair of renovations committee) and Bro. Bill Waring (SAANC BOD Chair) met virtually with our architect. The following points reflect what was discussed in this meeting.

Preparation for Permits

Our architect estimates that, once we get our proposal into the Historic Commission, the process will take about two months. She and one of her associates visited the hall last week to verify details required in the permit application. Approval from the Historic Commission is only necessary for exterior modifications, though we must acquire other Chapel Hill permits for both our interior and exterior projects.

The Roof

Bro. Joyner is waiting for referrals for new roofing contractors. The roofing company we were talking with has stopped responding to our communications, which we suspect is connected to their issues with their materials supplier. Once our roofing plans are approved by the Chapel Hill Historic Commission and we secure a contractor, replacing our roof should take no more than one week. We are still planning to replace our current shingle roof with a metal roof.

Interior Repairs

Because a permit is not required for our interior repairs, we can get started on these earlier and work on them simultaneously with the roof. If all goes accordingly to plan, and you all know how often that happens, the repairs should be completed by August 15th.

Renting Rooms in the Fall

We advise siblings not to depend on rooms to be available for rent in the fall.

General Contractor Our architect says that our renovations (primarily repairs) do not require a general contractor. Due to decades of experience as both a general contractor and an architect in Chapel Hill, she is capable in her capacity as an architect to coordinate subcontractors, draft plans, and work with permits.

Have questions or comments? Feel free to send us a message.

Thank you. We appreciate your support and patience.

YITB,
Renovations Committee

April 5, 2020

Bro. Joyner and our architect have been hard at work preparing for the next steps in the renovation, though we can only take those next steps once all government and business parties are up and running again.

In the interest of safety, 207 Pittsboro St. was closed on March 20th when UNC's campus closed. The door code has been changed and only four people have key access to the building. Bro. David Joyner went through the hall that day and turned off supply lines for all toilets, cut off the lights, and set the thermostat to only turn on in extreme temperatures.

Access to the Hall is limited to those who have been given permission to be there by SAANC chair Bill Waring, SAANC president Joy Jennings, or VP Physical Plant David Joyner. If you are given permission to be inside the Hall, DON'T USE THE TOILETS. The water to the toilets is cut off, which mean the toilet will not be able to flush.

Because our original roofing company has been unable to secure supplies for metal roofing, Bro. Joyner has reached out to another roofer in Denver, NC, from whom he has not yet received a response.

Our architect also learned from Chapel Hill City Planning Staff that our whole project will need two permits: one for the roof, and one for indoor repairs. The roof will need to be presented to the Historic District Commission for approval. We are working on our applications right now, though we do not know when the City of Chapel Hill will be able to next meet about these matters let alone review our applications. We will report when we have more dates on this.

We also learned from the Chapel Hill Planning Staff that the ADA requirements for renovations are much less involved that we were expecting: simple changes such as changing door handles and adding grab bars.

Fire safety has also been an important component of our renovations planning. Our architect asked the City of Chapel Hill for sprinkler and reports. Bro. Joyner called United Fire and Safety to ask for a copy of our last fire safety report, and to plan our next inspection (for which we are due). They are currently on lockdown, so Bro. Joyner will reach back out in a couple of weeks.

Sis. Kait Goodnight has continued her communications with construction attorneys and is currently scouting out more options that could best suit our budget. For more on this, please see the most recent SAANC BOD meeting minutes from April 5th, 2020.

Thank you, and please feel free to email us at renovations [at] stanthonync [dot] org with any questions.

Thank you,
Renovations Committee

March 20, 2020

After SAANC approved funding for the replacement of the roof, our roofer hasn’t been able to get a hold of his supplier. He is looking for another one right now. Current plans are still to move forward with the roof replacement as soon as our roofer is able to get all of his ducks in a row. Secondly, David Joyner met with the architect's rep to photograph the Hall and they are working on things. While there hasn't been a lot of movement recently, we are awaiting the next steps from our vendors.

February 25, 2020

Note from the SAANC board of directors conference call on Wednesday, February 25th:

MOTION​ to accept the $18,200 quote from GA Exteriors, pending confirmation from the architect according to Town of Chapel Hill regulations and historic district requirements, to replace the Hall’s current shingle roof with a metal roof before proceeding with further repairs in the current renovation project.​ PASSED

February 24, 2020

BSSA,

Over the last couple of weeks, Bro. David Joyner has been hard at work with our architect prioritizing our repairs. Our architect says that most everything we are planning falls under the umbrella of “repairs” and will therefore not require permitting.

Bro. Joyner met with an exterior/roofing contractor recommended through one of our architect’s references, and they inspected the roof and are preparing an estimate on a new metal roof. This will be our second quote for the roof, because Bro. Joyner got a quote from a different company in 2017 for the same repairs. A metal roof is the clear choice over a shingle roof, and the roofer predicted a much better price on a metal roof than the previous estimate. If the roofers can provide an official estimate in time for the call we hope that we will get the approval to go forward with roof repairs at the BOD meeting on Wednesday.

Bro. Joyner also brought in our long-time plumbing partners from Brown Brothers to do a thorough inspection of our plumbing. We should have a written report from them within the next few days. From then, Bro. Joyner and our architect will make a plumbing plan.

We have also discussed with our architect how to most affordably repair plaster ceilings, prevent future plaster damage in the future, putting in new flooring, and replacing inefficient light fixtures.

For the details on all of this, please see Bro. Joyner’s report for Wednesday’s BOD meeting. Please email the renovations committee for a link to the report.

On the side of the active chapter: Bro. Alex Manwill and the active siblings have been working with SAANC to prepare Terms of Use while rent is waived this semester. The hall now has some furniture which can be easily moved whenever we need to clear a room for construction. Thank you to Sibs John and Deb Matthews and anyone else who has donated furniture so the active members can still have a social connection with the space during the renovations process.

Thank you,

The Renovations Committee

February 7, 2020

We found an architect.
She is a licensed general contractor and an Architect who has run her own design/build firm in the Chapel Hill/Carrboro area for 25 years. We did a walk-through with her on January 31st.

We are contacting (sub)contractors.
Our architect advised us to first contact two sub-contractors: One exterior/roofing expert, and a plumber. The exterior/roofing contractor will be able to define any weak points on the outside of our house that may contribute to leaks or energy inefficiencies. The plumber will do a thorough inspection of the whole house, but will pay special attention to the bathrooms/shower rooms that are the central points of this entire renovation.

We are finding a construction attorney.
Kait Goodnight has done an incredible amount of research on construction attorneys in the area. She has spoken with no fewer than 5 and we are currently deciding which attorney based on who is most qualified for our project and who fits our budget.

We are learning about the town and state regulations.
John Matthews has done great research for the committee about what sorts of projects need permits from the city.

Our architect also confirmed that we, by law, need to commit 20% of our official renovation budget to ADA compliance updates.

How You Can Help

The most important thing
The entire chapter can hugely help the renovation effort by practicing good communication hygiene. This means:

If you have a question about renovations, ask the committee directly via renovations [at] stanthonync [dot] org.

Do not post general questions to all of SAANC or the active chapter.

Information about renovations is reviewed by David Joyner before being disseminated. Updates will come from Dave or Ace as Renovations Committee, or Matt Wood as SAANC VP of Communications.

If you have a question about how we are dividing up duties, please see the document about the renovations committee also linked earlier in this update. The people listed in this document are the main siblings authorized to participate in renovation coordination.

Volunteering

In these updates, we will periodically ask for volunteers.

Giving

The more money we have, the more flexibility we will have in our renovations.

These public updates are condensed highlights for quick dissemination. To receive lengthier and more detailed updates, contact renovations [at] stanthonync [dot] org for communications channels you can join.

If you have any questions, please email us directly at renovations [at] stanthonync [dot] org.