church

we phased the project for one reason: waste removal.  talbot county was in the process of planning a new sewer system (estimated completion: december 2025) and would not approve any new waste removal systems (and building permits that involved plumbing) until it completed that new system. 

while the church's existing system functioned, changing use from commercial to residential would require us to install a code compliant system.  (we jokingly suggested to change back to a "church" but they said it was too late). 

the county staff, with whom we have had a great relationship (they have been supportive and open to the project), said we could stabilize and repair the structure (including siding, roofing, etc.). essentially, everything from the interior walls outward. 

standing in the "social hall" looking toward the "parish house". the floor structure in both had rotted and collapsed. 

the most obvious issue was the floor structure in all three parts of the church. while the sanctuary "looked" fine, it was, in reality, as as damaged as the newer additions but probably did not collapse or deflect because of the 10"x10" beams. the 2x10/2x12 joists and beams in the 1948 and 1973 additions, however, were not thick enough to withstand the moisture damage. 

the 1973 "social hall" addition between the 1948 "parish house" (left) to the "sanctuary" (right). the "social hall" solved several problems in the 1970s: connecting the parish house and sanctuary and providing restrooms, additional event space, and a new furnace room. unfortunately, the addition covered much of the sanctuary's north wall (thus making the sanctuary much darker) and its paired windows and low ceilings (in relation to the room's width and depth) made the space somewhat oppressive.

we decided to remove the "social hall" in order to open up both the sanctuary and parish house. we would then reestablish the connection with a slender hallway.

sanctuary's exposed north wall revealing the pulpit bay and the original exterior paint color. the bay's center window was no where to be found

that's the vulcan range and other materials that remained on the ground . notice the beams attached to the long interior walls which supported the beams running through the windows. these were, in turn, supported by beams parallel to the long beams. it was a structural weave.

the steel beams that will lift the sanctuary. this was the most complicated part of the project not only because of the sanctuary's existing multiple beams and joists, but because the lifters had to "low crawl" (like army soldiers beneath barbed wire) through mud and beneath the dank space. 

the "sanctuary" lift begins (november 2023). once all steel beams were set, it only took about 2 hours to lift the entire sanctuary. the link below is the lift timelapse. 

starting the new foundations. once lifted about 8' off the ground, masons removed the existing block foundations and debris, poured footings, and built the new block walls. 

parish house lowered on to the new floor structure and foundations.

fortunately, the county allowed us to build the foundations for the future hallway connector

the new connecting hallway (spring 2024). we asked for the second and final addendum to the stabilization permit: frame the connecting hallway. the county, by this time, knew the sewer project was well underway and thought it reasonable that we should make the building weather tight.

shopping for replacement stained glass (early 2025). if you ever want to see an amazing array of stained glass (and other art glass) you should visit "anything in stained glass" in frederick, maryland. 

model of the storage wall between the living room and dining room (the kitchen is to the right)  (summer 2025). as you can imagine, there is very little storage space in a church (closets, cabinets, etc). I incorporated this "poche'" into a thick "wall" which also acted as a threshold between the foyer and dining area and between the dining area and living room.