Let's Build Together - Manos a la Obra Update
July 13, 2013
It has been awhile since we have had an update for you on the progress of the construction of our new building. Unfortunately, it is due to the reality, that there has been no forward progress to share with you for some time, except to tell you, that the issues which we had been battling with since the end of last year, continued until just recently.
The major hurdle we had to overcome at the time was obtaining the permits necessary to begin construction on our new property. In going through this process, we were confronted with an even bigger hurdle. In February, we discovered that there were discrepancies in the boundary survey. Three Surveys in fact, all different - of course! The 1st was from the early 1900’s, the 2nd from the developer, and the 3rd was from the archdiocese - when the land was purchased for the parish. Since these surveys did not match – this had to be resolved. This took MUCH more time than we had anticipated. It took a great amount of time to negotiate with the land developer and to have all of the legalities resolved. There were many, many, MANY meetings with real estate lawyers, civil engineers, archdiocesan officials, land developers, etc.
In the midst of all this, the parish received notices of unpaid back taxes on our property. Unfortunately, neither the archdiocese nor the parish knew that these taxes were delinquent. This issue was revealed as we were trying to record the final plat with the city of Pearland. We paid the taxes the same day that we were notified of this oversight. This was actually an easy fix, if only all things could be resolved so easily! Unfortunately, the issues with obtaining the plat continued due to the discrepancies in the boundary survey. "A plat is a survey of land which identifies the boundaries of the property and any easements, flood zones, roadway and access rights-of-way. A recorded official plat is required for the subdivision of land into smaller lots where the purpose of the owner is to establish building lots, or to dedicate street rights-of-way, easements or parks"-Guide to Planning and Development.
We are happy to announce that the official land plat was finally recorded the week of July 8th with the city of Pearland – some 6 months after we began with this issue back in February! Unfortunately, in the process of all of these unexpected land issues, the General Contractor with whom we had signed the initial contract, has since encountered some very difficult and severe financial issues. So severe in fact, that the archdiocese has had to terminate our contract with them. This is very unfortunate for both parties. We invite you to offer your prayers for this company and their employees so that they may be able to recover from their difficulties. For us, the good news is, that we discovered these issues before we were too far along in the building process, which has saved us from a great deal of difficulty. God is truly watching over us and this is a true testament for us, that we must place our faith in Him and allow Him to be in charge.
The Construction Sub-Committee of the Building Committee originally interviewed three General Contracting companies. It was a very close decision between the 1st and 2nd choice. Since we have had to terminate our contract with our first choice – we have contacted the number two company. They have informed us that they are still interested in working with us, so we have begun negotiations with them. In this process, our thoughts of concern went to the sub-contractors that were already awarded jobs on our project from the first contractor. Our new General Contractor has agreed to work with all of these sub-contractors, if they still want to work on our project. So the new contractor has been contacting all of the sub-contractors and advising them of the status of the job.
What is happening now?
We are working with this new General Contractor on the overall cost of the project. We are trying very hard to keep the cost the same as it was estimated/quoted a year ago. Please keep this in prayer. Along with negotiating with the sub-contractors, the General Contractor has also been reviewing our construction drawings in order to present their estimate. This is where we are now.
We are hopeful that we will be able to work all of this out in the next week or so. If this happens, then, now that everything is officially registered with the city of Pearland, the Contractor will be able to get a construction permit, and God willing, begin construction again on the property.
We want to thank all our parishioners for their patience and their fidelity in continuing their contributions to the Capital Campaign. If you have not joined us in this historic and amazing effort, it is not too late. There are pledge cards and envelopes on the Capital Campaign area in the Narthex and Social Hall . As you know, we have a weekly update for you regarding our parish finances in our bulletin on the inside of the front cover, including our Capital Campaign. We are also including a bulletin insert to give you a better description of where we are in our goal and fund raising efforts.
Be strong, pray, &
Participate!
