Dear St. Paul’s Family,
Space … the final frontier?
Our usable space at St. Paul’s is going to go through some major changes over the next 3-5 years. Currently, most staff offices are in the administration building along with our midsize meeting room, the Guild Room. The Great Hall building houses three staff offices (accounts dept and facilities manager) on the ground floor and two (director of liturgy and a room shared by three part-time staff) on the second floor. The chapel undercroft houses one staff office (music). Since the audiovisual control room displaced the music office, we are looking at moving the choir room to the chapel undercroft, where it will be close to both the music office and the vesting rooms.
Some time next year we will close on the sale of land and we will vacate the administration building. The five staff members currently located there will move to the ground floor of the Great Hall, and the present choir room will become a partial replacement for the Guild Room. During construction the Great Hall will be heavily used for gatherings. It will be a tight fit, but with current staffing we can make it work.
When construction of the new building is completed we will have approximately 2 1/2 times the square footage of the present Administration building. What luxury! Think of four zones: Zone 1, on the eastern wing of the first floor facing Balboa Park; Zone 2, on the western wing of the first floor facing Olive Street and Fifth Avenue; Zone 3, on the second floor, housing staff offices and reception; and Zone 4, the existing buildings with rooms that will be freed up for new uses (imagine a music suite under the Great Hall, and./or an outreach center in the chapel undercroft!). We hope to configure the new spaces as flexibly as possible, always keeping in mind how they can best be used for our mission and ministry while being both safe and accessible. The developer, Greystar, is anxious for us to define the infrastructure so they can build accordingly, and it is time for us to discern how God is calling us to use our space.
I am calling together a task force to advise Chapter on the best uses for the space. The task force will be divided into three groups: a ministries group to agree on the kinds of ministries most needed by our neighbors and our own congregation; a buildings and grounds group to determine logistical needs (such as desirable square footage or plumbing) and limitations (such as our Condo Declarations and zoning); and a steering group, working with Chapter and staff to make decisions and commitments based on the work done by the other two groups.
If you feel called to participate in this exciting project, which will influence the focus of our mission and ministry for years to come, please let me know by August 25.
Your sister in Christ,
Penny
