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Why can’t we just get a steel building at a lower cost and put bricks around it at a later time?
That is the current plan because of the additional cost of the brick, and also because it would be nearly impossible to match the brick when we finish adding the sanctuary and the other wing.
In hindsight, why couldn’t we have purchased the blueprints from Hillside Methodist Church, tweaked them to suit our needs and property? I think we wasted much time and money having new blue prints drawn up.
We would still be obligated to pay the architect who designed the prints originally. Blue prints are the individual work of the architect and they are entitled to be compensated each time they are used. We would be paying the architect a second time for work he had already completed but was entitled to as the prints were his trademark work. The prints drawn for FBC are based on several months/years of input from pastors to SS teachers and are custom designed to meet those needs. It is also worth nothing that we committed to a building "pad" when we committed to the site work that took place in 2007. The FBC plans presented on May 17, 2009 stay within the limits of the building pad constructed in 2007.
If we put up our current property and buildings (Prince and Water Streets) for sale and they sell before we complete our facilities on Spring Street – what will we do?
We have the option to make the sale continent on completion of construction of Spring Street property.
How long of a distance is it between the Multi-purpose Building and the Auxiliary Building? And, will it be difficult to go to and from?
200 feet, and difficulty will be weather related. It is a similar distance of youth house to fellowship hall.
Why don’t we put a metal roof on the Multi-purpose building – wouldn’t that be less expensive?
Currently, a shingled roof is less expensive than a metal roof. Life of metal roof is longer than shingled roof.
How do I decide how much to give?
We are asking the 190+ households in our church to, on average, increase their giving by $2,000 per year for the next three (3) years. For some who are on a fixed income or who are already giving as much as they can – to increase seems impossible. The truth is, this entire project seems humanly impossible. But we must remember that this is more than a facts and figures venture – it is a faith venture! In determining your gift, we recommend the following
- Give God an opportunity to something miraculous through you.
“Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” (Jeremiah 33:3).
- Seriously pray about what God would have you give.
“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5).
- Once you get a sense of what God wants you to give - make a Faith Promise to God. Tell Him you believe He laid this amount on your heart and that He will help you discover the resources to give to the project.
- Then expectantly make your commitment by placing a Commitment Card in the offering plate (check the Café counter or call the church office to request a Commitment Card).
“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21).
Will I need to give a full year’s commitment this year?
It is a 3 year commitment that began for most in the congregation on June 7, 2009. It will run 3 years from that time until June of 2012. You can choose to retire your gift by that time or adjust it 3 years from the time you make the commitment.
Why are we taking out a 30-year mortgage? Is it going to take that long to pay off? Will we have to pay all 30 years on the note?
We are actually talking about a 20 year mortgage and do not believe that it will take the full twenty years to pay off. This of course depends on giving to the church over the next few years. If we meet or exceed our goals it is very possible that we could pay off the loan in 10 years. If we don't meet these goals it is very likely that it will take the full 20 years. Historically FBC has paid off notes ahead of schedule. The reason we are using 20 years is because of the payment size. We did consider 30 years and decided to go with 20 because traditionally that is what a good percentage of church construction loans are for.
What does the Bible say about borrowing money?
The Bible does not prohibit borrowing. It does advise the one who borrows that he will have the burden of repayment which can be heavy at times, and he must consider this carefully (Pr. 22:7). God allowed the Jews to loan to each other interest-free, and to loan to foreigners with interest (Deut. 23:19-20).
When is the insurance money coming?
We do not have a firm answer on when the money will be received. The 2nd of our claims, which is the error and omission claim, was originated on Feb. 10th, 2009. We continue to maintain contact with this insurer and he is working diligently to bring this matter to a close. Our first claim which is with the earthquake policy holder was completed in January. We have not been able to access the money due to the impending claim on the E & O claim.
Who will see the commitment I make?
Only the people who are voted on and authorized by First Baptist Church, which would be four (4) individuals: Treasurer, Assistant Treasurer, Financial Secretary, and Assistant Financial Secretary. In addition, a bank representative may want to see our commitment slips.
What if I want to make an anonymous donation – can I still request that it be given to the Building Fund?
Yes.
Does money dedicated to the Building Fund stay in the Building Fund?
Money that is dedicated to the Building Fund stays in the Building Fund. For it to be used for anything else would require a church vote.
Why don’t we display the buckets to empty the Piggy Banks every Sunday, as this would be a visible encouragement? Yard Sales? Cut out unnecessary expenses?
This could also be considered.
Are we going to build big enough for our needs for worship services? Are we going to build big enough for all Sunday School classes? Are we going to build big enough for Awana and Mops?
Yes, the multi-purpose building will seat approximately 525 people. There will be classrooms for all SS classes currently meeting and some room to handle short term growth. The Awana circles are actually drawn on the gym floor on the plans and Mops will have adequate facilities.
Why aren’t we using our current buildings for SS and having worship services at the new building?
All church leaders feel like splitting the campus between SS and worship services would not be feasible at this time. We feel that attendance would drop sharply due to the possibility that one family could have members attending at each location. (i.e. children’s class at Prince & Water and adults class at Spring St.)
When will the building be ready?
The timeline for building would most likely be a 17 month process if it were started immediately.
Is it going to look like a pole barn?
The multi- purpose building will not look like a pole barn but will be metal sided with a shingled roof. The Auxiliary Building will look more like a pole structure.
Is it going to look like a gymnasium?
The multi-purpose section will serve primarily as our church sanctuary, but also as a gymnasium; however, the inside will have the appearance of an auditorium. It will have finished walls (drywall & paint), finished ceiling, curtains, acoustical treatment, and the basketball goals should be portable.
Will we have a site manager to keep an eye on the contractor’s time lines and quality of materials used?
Yes, we actually had a project manager for the site work contract. Mike Schafer will be a huge asset in regards to this. Mike was a project manager for Johnson Controls before his retirement and will be able to consult with the project site manager.
Like many members of the church, I love the stained glass windows in the old sanctuary. Is there any way in which to utilize these in the new facility?
Yes, current design plans would incorporate them in phase # 2 of the building project which would actually be the auditorium. There would be significant expense to move them and install them when that occurs. Until that time they would remain in the old church building.
Why do we need speaker and video fed into each room? How much does it cost?
NOTE: The rooms in the Auxiliary Building will not include a speaker and video feeds.
Why? We have decided to include speaker and video feed in every room because it gives us flexibility in our classroom usage. Even though each room is currently assigned to a class, we do not want to limit ourselves to that being the only function. When we begin the process of constructing our new Worship Center and finally the other wing & fellowship hall, we may change the function of any particular classroom. The speakers also allow us to use a paging/intercom system in case of emergency. It could also be used in the future of the church should we ever decide to open a daycare or Christian school at our church.
Cost? At time of construction, the cost is only in materials wiring and connection boxes, so cost is minimal. However, should we leave some rooms out and decide we want to add later, it will be much more expensive. As part of our research, we asked other churches about their decision to do this. Those that did not take care of this at time of construction, regret their decision because it is too much to go back and install it now that the building has been built.
Will we be able to eliminate the carpet and finishing the drywall from the bid and let the church members do that work?
Possible but not probable. The biggest challenge is mobilizing a work force that can achieve this amount of work on some type of regular schedule and maintain uniform quality throughout the building. This is a very large project. Past history indicates that maintaining a regular volunteer force that would be needed to achieve this work would be difficult (i.e. mowing)
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