House of Harmony

Blog

  • Service of Celebration

    Service of Celebration

    July 1 was the closing service (Service of Celebration). They were guessing around 150 in attendance. They had all of the congregation members, neighbours and others who travelled to be there and 30 choir members (made up of people who had at one time sung in the choir). Some of my friends came out to support us as well (thanks!). Wow, it was a very powerful day. There was much singing, stories and history. It was an emotional day for many (me included). They asked me to sing and for us to say a few words about the future of the building. We assured them that we would take care of the building with respect and would hope that they would have a chance to visit in the future. Many approached us at the reception with questions and comments. It was good to be able to answer questions since there can be so many rumours that spread when people don’t really know what is happening. Many thought we were starting a business. There were even rumours that we were starting a dance hall – HA!  I explained that we are converting it into our home but do not want to close it off from the community. We would love to have pot-luck suppers, community bbq’s and told them that we expect to have an open house in the fall where people can come through to see what we have done to that point.
    Tomorrow we take possession. The next couple of weeks are going to be crazy but we will try to post as often as we can. Leah

  • Under way!

    As of today we are officially on “holiday”. We are going to see a lot of this place in the next two weeks.

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  • Drawings/Floor Plans

    Drawings/Floor Plans

    We have to make a few changes before moving in by adding a couple of walls and adjusting the washroom to include a bathing area. Professional drawings (floor plans and exterior elevations) are needed in order for us to apply for a building permit. This is one of those areas where I have learned so much about building codes, regulations, standards etc. When nothing is changed structurally (support walls) the drawings can be fairly simple. For areas where there are changes to support walls, footings, floor joists, framing, insulation and other structural changes, detailed lists must be included.

    First I drew up test drawings of where the walls would go and what our needs are. This is a surprisingly difficult task when you have a big open space and want to add walls. What are our needs now? Will they change in 10 years? Now would ideally be the time to plan for that. You need to decide what the paths will be that you take and where you go most often. What are the heavily used rooms and have the heaviest foot traffic? You have no idea how many times the walls moved by a foot and then back. This is the time to decide what can be done now and what you hope to add – leaving room for those things. This is the time for visualization (I liked that part). I also cut out scaled graphics of my current furniture to see if it would fit and if it allowed enough space for adjustments in the size of future furniture. Some of the other things that are considered at this time are sizes of closets, width and types of doors, type of lighting, positions of lights and plugs/switches. I started thinking about paint colours a bit too since thinking about the way the light would come in and the complete feel of the space was important to the visualization.

    We hired a draftsman who went in and did detailed measurements with an electronic measuring device. It looked a bit easier than the two person measuring a 16 foot wall system. Here is a sample of the drawings we got back. Very nice. The drawings will then go to the contractor for pricing, materials and to apply for the building permit.

  • The Chimney

    The Chimney

    It is 21 days until the possession date. We haven’t started our own renovations yet but there are some being done. As you can see from the first photos – the chimney looks kinda like a Jenga game (the one where you pull the blocks from the bottom of the tower and it becomes increasingly unstable…).

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Well, they offered to remove the chimney and cap it and we thought that was a generous and excellent idea. The furnaces are not needed right now so are completely shut off and don’t need venting. We will be replacing the furnaces within the first few days of moving in and they will be direct vent out the sides of the building making the chimney unnecessary. I have included a photo of the roof after the removal of the chimney.

     

  • Buying a church and turning it into your home.

    Let me be honest with you – this is an adventure that comes with many challenges! There are things that you will learn about that you never thought in your wildest dreams that you would ever even care to know.
    All about zoning – (changes/variances, applications, meetings, reports, hearings, official plan, bylaws, Planner, Chief Building Official, Architect/Engineer, BCIN, Lawyers, presenting your case, letters, intentions, neighbours) All I can say is prepare to do some reading and be patient.
    Bylaws and building codes – Do some reading about this before you start the project. It is best to be informed and ready for things like needing to replace the septic system so it is up to building code. Although there were 100 people or more gathering in the building for over 100 years, if it is an old system – you will be required to upgrade based on number of fixtures (toilets, sinks etc) as well as bedrooms and square footage (even if it is just for two people). Bylaws are different from town to town and things that you could have in your previous house may be against the bylaw in this area. You can usually find the bylaws on the website for the municipality. Go over them ahead of time – I was glad I did.
    Contractors – Working with a multitude of contractors and tradespeople varies from professionals who treat you with respect to those who hope that you are naive and want to take you for a ride. Know your stuff. There is so much to read out there. One of the books I read was Mike Holmes “Make It Right” and he does have some good advice. Read, ask people you trust and go with recommendations when you can.
    Money – Make sure you have enough for the extras. We haven’t even started the renovations yet and already the original quotes have been adjusted once they realized “this or that”.
    Mortgage – Although buying a church to renovate into a home isn’t THAT unusual – it doesn’t fit into the pull-down menus of many banks and lending facilities. Plus, I have recently discovered that they will only lend you a certain percentage for “improvements” – even if that is for a new septic system, walls for a bedroom and a place to bathe. Be ready, get pre-approved and sign papers to avoid any last minute issues.
    Insurance – Get everything you can sorted out early and never assume that it will be standard. Again with the “pull-down menus”. It is difficult for many corporations to understand why you would need a space like that unless it was profit-motivated.
    Get to know the congregation – they are amazing people and understand you when no one else does. They have an emotional tie to the building and want someone who will respect and appreciate it. I want it to continue to be a place the the community can visit and break bread (or at least have a pot-luck). I want friends and family to enjoy the space with me and share in music and laughter and good food.

    Never lose sight of the goal and keep that passion strong. Talk about it to friends; they will be so excited for you and will remind you of why you are doing all of this.

    It is a dream that I have had for most of my life. It is finally coming true and no roadblocks are gonna stop us! Stay strong; be as prepared as you can and be ready for anything.
    Best wishes!
    L