Barnwell Project
“Our Gift to the Next Generation”

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This webpage summarizes progress to date, and will be used to keep congregation members informed of developments as they unfold.

Initial Plans & Assessment of Needs

Since the Fall of 1999, the Barnwell Committee has been working to address the matter of renovating and possibly expanding Barnwell Hall. Two simple factors have driven the Committee’s work from the start: 1) Christ Church has more programs and more people, especially children in Sunday school, and thus needs more space; and 2) Barnwell Hall, which is used for our Christian Education programs, is deteriorating and often not functional for program needs. Over the past year, the Barnwell Committee has met with church committees, clergy and tenants of Christ Church to develop a facilities plan that will effectively meet the immediate and foreseeable needs of Christ Church. After careful study, they have identified a capital project that will enhance both our facilities and our capacity for services and activities.

The Barnwell building, constructed in 1966, is the educational and community center for the Church. To date, the building has not undergone any type of addition, alteration or renovation beyond minor finishes and furniture changes. The scope of the proposed project will enable us to: expand and modernize Barnwell; address some of the design and functional limitations inherent in the site; create a unified and complementary structure in conjunction with the sanctuary; anticipate and prepare for some of the requirements that are likely to emerge in the future. Some of this will be accomplished through the construction of a two-story addition connecting the sanctuary to Barnwell, while other needs will be satisfied through modifications made to the existing space. Architectural plans that show the proposed space configuration are given at the top of this webpage.

Primary areas we are addressing through the new design are:

Barnwell Hall

Christian Education/Youth Functions

Music and Theater

Homeless

Design & Construction

The Barnwell Steering Committee interviewed a number of architectural firms, solicited bids, looked at projects they had done in the area, and finally selected the firm of Ford Farewell Mills and Gatsch, Architects, in Princeton NJ (you can visit their website). The firm is well-known in Summit -- they designed the new Summit City Hall and they have been engaged by the Unitarian Church in Summit for a major building project.

We are also working with Bohler Engineering on the site & civil work, Princeton Engineering Group on the Mechanical / Electrical / Plumbing / Fire Protection for the project and Bourne, Noll & Kenyon for our legal representation.

The drawings shown at the top of this webpage as thumbnails (click on them to zoom in) are not final, but do represent the result of many iterations with the Boards and committees and the congregation of the church trying to balance what we would like to do with what we can afford to do. Until the capital campaign is complete, we won't know exactly what we can afford, so some elements of the design remain optional for now. Also, the actual facing material hasn't been selected yet, so the color in the colorized sketch is only meant to give an idea of what it might look like.

As of March, 2001, the Barnwell Construction Committee is working to finalize the details of the plans, looking for a general contractor to hire, and making alternate venue plans for the Sunday School program and other groups that will be displaced from the Barnwell building during the months of construction.

Capital Campaign

The firm of CCS (Community Counselling Services) was engaged early on to assist with our capital fund-raising campaign (you can visit their website). As of March, 2001, Bill McLean from CCS is working with us and is present at the the Church most weekdays.

The capital campaign has evolved into several phases, each conducted by a different committee (with some overlap): (I) an initial Financial Feasibility Study was chaired by Dennis Bushe, (II) a Capital Fund Drive Planning phase was chaired by Pat Calhoun, and (III) the Fund Drive itself, which in turn is moving through several phases -- a Leadership Gifts phase, a Major Gifts phase, and a Special Gifts Phase.

We were pleased that Leadership Gift pledges, totalling more than $1.9 million, had been secured as of Jan 1, 2001. As of May, total pledges have reached $3.4 million.

Information on the progress of the Capital Fund Drive will be posted here. Meanwhile, if you are a member of the Christ Church congregation, please consider the Gift possibilities outlined below.

Gift Options for Your Consideration

Milestone Events for the Renovation of Barnwell Hall

Listed below are selected milestones for the renovation work on Barnwell Hall.

As with any large building project, the schedule tends to change, and delays are common.  We will update the schedule and add further detail as the actual construction schedule is determined.

	Milestone	Target Date
	Solicit ideas & program needs from the congregation	Done
	Preliminary architectural drawings and cost estimate	Done (Fall '00)
	Approval of the congregation to proceed	Done (Dec 17 '00)
	Solicit input from the neighborhood and the community	Done (Apr '01)
$$$	Capital Funding Campaign (which should last 3-4 months)	Done (Late '01)
	Summit Board of Adjustment approval	Done (Jul 16 '01)
	Vacate Barnwell Hall	Done (Late Jun '01)
	Construction underway	Started July 2001
	Substantial completion – moving back in	July-August, 2003
	Final completion	September, 2003

Barnwell Committees

The original Barnwell Steering Committee has now split into three committees, which run in parallel and handle the several aspects of the Barnwell project.

Capital Campaign Executive Committee --  Managing the fund-raising overall:

Helena Ring (Chair) Terry Baker Dave Bunting

Pat Calhoun Dave Graepel

Doug Koppenol Leanne Wells

Capital Campaign Committee --  The Capital Campaign is in its Special Gifts Phase. Committee members for this phase are:

Leanne Wells Terry Baker Dave Bunting Pat Calhoun Mary Campbell Patty Caputo Steve Fellows Ellie Fischer

Nancy Galietti Dave Graepel Cary Hardy Lee Hilton Nora Holley Squire Knox Doug Koppenol Tom Loughlin

Al Mac Rae Jane Patrick Helena Ring Quimby Robinson Claire & Chris Rupkey Hedy Tukey John Vigilante

Design & Construction Committee --  As of March, 2001, the members are:

If you are a member of the congregation and know your login and password for the access-restricted portion of this website, you may click on details for phone numbers and email addresses of individual committee members, and for access to the committee e-mail list. (If you are a member of the congregation but don't know your login and password, click on Members Pages for help.)

Feedback

We value your feedback.  Please send your comments and questions on any aspect of the project to Mike O'Sullivan, who will either reply himself or forward your comments to the appropriate person.

(Send questions about this webpage to Paul Tukey, tukey@ChristChurchSummit.org.)