STATUS REPORT ON THE REMODELING
OF THE OLD BUILDING
After many years of planning and preparation, the contract for the remodeling of the old temple building was finally signed on January 19, 2008. In order for the construction to progress smoothly and timely, it is necessary to move all the furniture and miscellaneous objects out of the old 2-story building before construction.
Under the supervision of Abbess Ven. Tien Inn, Resident Venerables and volunteers worked together with high degree of cooperative team spirit to complete the move in 10 days.
On January 30, 2008 at 7:00 a.m. Abbess led a “Cleansing Ceremony” with all Resident Venerables before handing over the building to the contractor at 8:00 a.m. for construction.
The Contractor began his work immediately. Many work tasks are underway concurrently as planned, such as clearing / removing of walls, bathroom remodeling, building of new kitchen, partition walls of bedroom, fixing of underground water lines, electric lines, etc. The Abbess communicates closely with project engineering team to assure smooth progress of the project.
In mid-February, it was discovered that the HVAC control system design has issued that would affect future operation. ABLS held a series of emergency meetings chaired by Abbess Ven. Tien Inn, and attended by Ven. Tien Yung, Architect Steve Yang, Engineer Dennis Jang, Project Manager Stone Shih, HVAC Engineer Daniel Yu, along with two volunteers of ABLS David He and Chan Chun Zier. The 8-person met to discuss on the issues, evaluate alternatives, and to arrive on a joint agreement and decisions. The revised design will incorporate manual switch controls that will accommodate the operational needs in the future.
The old temple building was built 20 years ago. The remodeled construction exposed many areas where structures have been severely deteriorated. On March 7, 2008, under the supervision of the Abbess, the Structure Engineer inspected the exterior columns and found extensive damages due to water and termite attack. These damaged columns will affect the safety of the building and therefore need to be repaired or replaced. In addition, it is found that the guard on the second floor exterior hallway has deteriorated badly and the spacing of the vertical wood bars does not meet the current code requirements. Thus, it is determined that the guard on the second floor needs to be replaced.
As a result of the above, the contract with the contractor has to be amended to include the additional work and cost. The increase in cost is rather substantial. ABLS sincerely seek your continues generous support to be part of this rare opportunity to contribute towards the completion of this remodeling project. Your kind support will in turn help provide a more conducive environment for all devotees coming to the temple. We look forward. We look forward to your generous support.