In September 2003, Cecilia Humphreys, the architect hired by St John's, presented a vision for the renovation of St John's. This vision, which included major changes to both the ministry areas and the worship space, was endorsed by ARC. A number of people expressed concern about the design of the worship space and the overall cost. As a result of this feedback, ARC, using the work done by the consultants hired by Cecilia, developed a modified proposal for review and input by the congregation. This was then presented in a document on June 6, 2004. This document proposed more limited change to both the worship space and the ministry areas, thus reducing the costs. During the summer, ARC received a number of written and verbal comments and questions concerning its June 6 proposal. A summary of the written comments has been included in the bulletin [and on our website] and the more detailed comments are posted on the ARC Bulletin Board.

This spring, ARC worked with The Well in the preparation of a submission to the City of Ottawa for funding for renovation to the basement area occupied by The Well. In mid July, The Well was notified that its application had been successful and that it would receive $505,400 for its renovations. This money must be spent by March 2006.

This is a multi-phase project. Given the immediate availability of funding for The Well renovation, ARC is proposing to immediately consider the first phase - renovation of the basement - and to continue our discussions regarding future phases over the course of the next year.

St John's, as owner of the basement space rented by The Well, has an obligation to upgrade the infrastructure (e.g. plumbing, electrical, fire code requirements, etc.) in support of The Well renovations. In addition, both St John's and The Well need more space and the only source of additional space in the basement is through excavation of the crypt, the area below the Nave. No matter what decisions are made by St John's, The Well will be proceeding with its renovation next spring in order to complete the work by the March 2006 deadline. If The Well's additional needs are to be satisfied, St John's will have to make a decision regarding excavation of the crypt. Two studies - a technical study of the basement renovation including the crypt excavation and a fund raising feasibility study - are discussed below. These studies will assist us in making this decision a few months from now.

Implicit in the above proposal is deferral of discussion related to renovations to the ground and second floors and hence the location of the various ministry areas. (The one item on the ground floor to be included in phase one would be upgraded washrooms.) The discussion of potential changes to the worship area would also be deferred. In fact, during the Chamber Music Festival, using the temporary stage, the members of ARC saw a partial mock up of the proposed nave configuration and concluded that the June 6 design needed modification.

If there is support for excavating the crypt, the new area would provide much of the required new ministry space identified by St John's. ARC appreciates the various suggestions it has already received regarding locations for various ministries, so the ministry or ministries to be located in this space would be the subject of future discussions.

In February 2004, the parish approved a framework agreement for the sale of the parking lot to Teron Inc in order to build affordable condominiums. St John's would receive $1 million plus one level of parking. A legal agreement has been drafted but not signed because three specific factors need now to be considered. First, there has been a significant increase in construction prices, particularly steel prices, which will increase the cost of each condominium unit. Secondly, the City of Ottawa has recently reintroduced development charges in the downtown core. The original costing assumed no development charges. Thirdly, city officials have suggested a number of design changes that would increase the cost per unit.

There have been meetings with the Mayor and Councillor Diane Holmes, as well as with city officials to determine what is feasible. In response to the above factors, Teron's preliminary analysis indicates that Teron can still build a condominium that is 100% affordable to households with incomes less than the 40th income percentile even with an increase in the selling price. Teron is seeking feedback from Councillor Diane Holmes before proceeding with a more detailed proposal. Once the proposal is more defined, it will be presented to the congregation for review and discussion and subsequent approval. Because the parking lot development is still in flux, we cannot assume that we will receive the one million dollars. We should therefore be relying on fund raising for the first phase of the renovations.

Proposed Studies:

• Technical Study of Basement Renovation including Crypt Excavation and
• Fund Raising Feasibility Study

The work done to date by various consultants has provided a rough estimate of the costs of renovating the basement. These consultants have also indicated that excavating the crypt is feasible. Over the course of the next 3 months, more detailed costing will be done on all aspects of the basement renovation. To prepare these costs, a detailed analysis is required, particularly of the crypt excavation. Such an analysis would include: a structural analysis, determination of fire code requirements including appropriate exits, and analysis of environmental considerations due to basement use, including appropriate heating and ventilation. An estimate of the cost of upgrading the ground floor washrooms would also be part of this study. The study would be undertaken by Tom Blood, the design consultant hired for The Well renovations. Tom would also be used by St John's for its basement renovations. Tom will work in cooperation with a construction manager who will be selected shortly. ARC will be seeking approval to proceed with this study at the October 3 Vestry. Money would be withdrawn from the St John's Fund to undertake the study.

The contract for The Well renovations is between the City of Ottawa and the Diocese of Ottawa. St John's has been asked by the Diocese to take responsibility for overseeing the renovation of The Well. St John's also needs to select someone to represent its interests during the period of the technical study. A single person should assume both these responsibilities. At the October 3 Vestry, the Corporation will recommend a person for this task and seek approval to fund this work.

The main purpose of this study is to estimate how much money St John's could raise in support of its phase one and future renovations. DVA Navion, fundraising consultants specializing in church fund raising, have presented a proposal to St John's. Their team would conduct 40-45 personal interviews with selected members of St John's. These interviews would be supplemented by one or two focus groups. An additional 10-15 interviews with individuals/businesses external to the church would test the potential for support for The Well. Interviews would be confidential and would provide an opportunity for those interviewed to identify priorities, level of financial support, and issues associated with the proposed renovations. The cost of the study is $15,000 plus a maximum of $2,000 for travel. A number of parishioners have already agreed to provide most of the necessary funds for this study. It would take about 2 months to complete.