Project Lemonade: As the Wheels Turn

The ministries and mission of Clear Lake Presbyterian Church continue to spin at a high pace, but the process of mold remediation grinds away in low gear.

A Long-Awaited Meeting

On Tuesday, April 9, leaders of Project Lemonade met with Ed Whiting, the adjustor for Kemper Insurance to hear the remediation plans and construction recommendations he had to offer. Much of the meeting simply confirmed information we already knew. That is, the insurance company will eliminate all the mold and, in the process, replace any building parts (such as drywall, stucco, carpet) in order to return the buildings to their previous usefulness, and the church will need to correct those parts of the building that have allowed water to get into walls, thereby causing the growth of the mold.

Kemper presented an Engineering Evaluation Report that specified all the changes the church will need to implement in order to make the buildings waterproof. These changes include repairing or replacing roofs, gutters, flashing, windows, attic ventilation, and landscaping. Costs for such work were not outlined. The analysis was provided so that the church can acquire its own, fully detailed engineering study prior to contracting the needed repairs. All this work will need to be completed by us before the insurance company proceeds to remediate the mold.

Mr. Whiting then outlined Kemper’s plans for remediation of the mold. The east and south walls of the sanctuary/administration building will "skinned," that is, the stucco exterior will be replaced completely. The north wall (with the offices) will be remediated section by section (in 2 ft. by 2 ft. squares) until all mold is eliminated. The west wall (the entrance area) has no mold, so remediation there will not be required.

The Christian Education building will not need to be skinned. Instead, the contractor will remove the drywall inside the affected walls, and the mold will be chemically removed from there. The drywall will then be replaced, as will all carpet.

All contaminated ventilation systems will be cleaned, with some parts being replaced.

The insurance agent then presented proposals from particular contractors for the work. Those proposals listed widely divergent prices, so Amy Myslinski plans to meet with the contractors to assess the differences in scope and attendant costs.

We had hoped that this long-awaited meeting would finally provide us the information needed to take action on the remediation process. Unfortunately, many questions still remain unanswered, so the waiting continues…

…they that wait upon the Lord…

At the same time other wheels are turning in differing directions…

An Energetic Research Team

From the time of the original discovery of mold in the buildings, many members have blurted "Just tear that building down" or "Let’s buy that big church on CLC Blvd." A lot of laughs, shrugs and "hmmmms" have followed such comments. Wanting to explore all the options, the Session formed a Master Plan Task Force to seize this moment. "Who knows?" they said. "Maybe God has something really creative in mind."

Under the chairmanship of John Swartwout, the committee has been exploring various possibilities. Simply to remediate and rebuild the existing buildings is the obvious "plan A." Then again, the committee chose to explore more radical possibilities. "Why not tear down the Christian Ed. building, build out the south half of the CLC 2nd floor, and then raise funds for a whole new, two-story CE building?" You might call that "plan B." What about Grace Church? A year ago, the Clear Lake Methodist congregation had come close to closing a deal to purchase the site and facilities of Grace Community Church, which is building a new worship and education center on I-45, north of Dixie Farm Road. Feasibility studies showed that such a move would be affordable, but after a close vote over the move, the plan was dropped. Could it be that God might be leading us to be the inheritors of that large facility? Call that question "plan C."

Obviously, plan A seems to be the obvious thing to do. Plan B offers some creative possibilities. And plan C is a long-shot at best—indeed an idea that the Session has not even entertained at this time. Nevertheless, the task force is wanting to be open to whatever direction the wind of the Spirit may be blowing, so such options are being investigated.

In the meantime …the wheels keep turning

The obviously frustrating effect of such goings-on is the absence of obvious progress. Where it comes to the brick-and-mortar side of our church life, things look pretty stymied. We seem to be driving with the brakes on. But for good reason. We do not want to allow our impatience to lead us into foolish, short-sighted decisions. God surely has given us this season of change to provide a launch pad for even greater ministry in the future than we have seen in the past. We certainly do not want to act impulsively nor impatiently—only to realize later that our shortcut had bypassed the great ministry adventure God was preparing for us.

So the order of the day is …"They that wait upon the Lord…"

Then again, the focus of the day remains as it has been: to be a congregation fulfilling the Great Ends of the Church, namely,

* the proclamation of the gospel for the salvation of humankind
* the shelter, nurture and spiritual fellowship of the children of God
* the maintenance of divine worship
* the preservation of the truth
* the promotion of social righteousness, and
* the exhibition of the Kingdom of Heaven to the world*

Such a mission is not as easily accomplished when the world, the flesh, the devil, AND/ OR MOLD keep coming up with lemons. But as we work and worship, proclaim and pray, love and learn—that’s what really will turn the lemons to lemonade. That’s what will keep the wheels turning briskly.

*Book of Order, G-1.0200, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)