Addition & Renovation Verses New Hall
Mount Pleasant Community Association Community Hall Addition & Renovation Verses New Hall Our Original Community Hall was constructed in 1959 and had the west side added in 1989, so we are dealing with essentially a 60-year-old structure. It has approximately 6500 square feet including the upper and lower halls. If you have had any involvement with the building, you recognize that it is very cut up and dated. About five years ago, during my Presidency, we established a need to renovate and add on to the Hall. We had Conceptual drawings prepared to: add a Board Room; Replace the Washrooms; Add an Office; Add on to and refurbish the Kitchen; Do Upgrades to the Basement; Replace the Furnaces and Rooftop Heating and Cooling Units. We did not have Construction Drawings, so we never gathered formal quotes, but our Committee, who are in the Construction Industry had put together a Best Guess of $1.250.000.00 to do the project. Any of the replacement renovations would be eligible for Provincial and City Grants that would recap either 50% of the costs and in some cases 75% of the costs. Any new construction would not qualify for any Grant Monies. When we went to pass a motion to expend more funds to move this renovation along, we had kick back from some of the newer Board members who did not have any of the background on the original concept. Their concern was investing that much money on an old building, would we not be better to build a completely new building, so I was tasked with putting the costs together to build a new hall where the east parking lot is and then razing the old hall and installing a new parking lot there. With the assistance of Catherine Gulinao, our NPC Officer from the City of Calgary, we went over what is required from the City to get approval for building a new structure as well as putting me in touch with representatives from other CA’s that are currently in the midst of constructing new facilities. With that in mind I will put together the Pros and Cons of both Renovating & Addition verses building a Completely New Hall. Renovation & Addition Pros: -We have the money required to complete this project (with the addition of Grants) in the bank. -It would require very little volunteer input -The Hall has some historical attachment for some long-time community residents. Cons: -We would lose some rental income while the renovations were going on. -We would still have a cut up building that may not have all the facilities to meet the needs of the current community residences. - We will have to spend $1,176,000.00 over the next 25 years (in 2018 $) to maintain the hall and replace worn out equipment. As compiled by Stantec Consulting Inc. -We will still be dealing with a 60-year-old structure. New Hall Pros: -Building will be brand new so we will not have to spend a large amount maintaining the hall for a minimum of 5 years. -Building will be designed to meet the needs of the current community Membership. -We would not lose rental income while the hall was being built. -A new building might give the community a boost and have more involvement with a hall that meets the members needs. Cons: -Costs. We would need to raise between $1.5 and $2.5 million to complete the project, depending on the size and amenities included. -Would make it farther to walk for Sportsplex users who currently park in the east lot. Now that you have some of the background to this issue we are asking all Community Residence to fill out a Questionnaire, that was compiled by our Community Member Jack Lucas, so we can gauge the Communities feeling about Renovation Verses New and to see if we can get a consensus of how the majority of the Community wants to proceed. We would ask that you take the survey online,
http://bit.ly/2RZWPsU
or if you do not have computer access please call the Hall Manager, Nickie @ 403-282-1314, on Tuesdays and Thursdays and we will deliver a copy to your door. On behalf of MPCA I would like to thank you in advance for taking the time to read this as well as doing the survey, so we know where to guide the CA in the coming years. Yours, Murray Anderson, Past President and Hall Director -
