Wednesday, February 28, 2007

The guys have stepped into over drive on the last few weeks. The roof has been completed and the skylights in the store are almost ready to be installed. We hope to open the store and bathroom areas in the next week. The cafe and pavilion will be the next step.
We received concrete last week to pour the walkway and the stairs and the entrance of the site. We are scheduled to receive two more loads one this week and another next week to complete the wheelchair access and walkways.

Pouring the walkway takes three or four guys and a great deal of hard work. It all must happen quickly to insure the concrete does not harden before they have distributed it evenly. Below Dave, Stafford, Alfredo, Segundo, and Lennox work together to distribute the concrete.The railings will be attached to the outer side once the cement has hardened.

Cyrille is working on the landing which will house the ice machine outside of the cafe level.Below Alfredo walks up the newly completed staircase which connects the cafe to the upper pavilion area.The painters are back on site and have begun to paint the floor of the store so we can install the shelves and coolers this weekend. It will be nice to have one part of the project complete. In the image below you can see Cyrille working in the skylight opening to form up the raised opening for both windows. The two loads of gravel arrived last week and we have had the track hoe out at the site working to distribute it evenly across the pavilion area and also in the parking area in the image below. The gravel should help with dust and mud once the pavilion has opened. Below you can see the track hoe preparing the parking lot area for the gravel and also our first delivery.

Below you can see the huge mound of gravel that must be distributed in this area.

As mentioned above the roof installation has been completed and it looks wonderful.

Alfredo and Edward have completed the staircase down from the campground area. Below you can see the almost finished product.

Our welder has been working hared to complete the awning supports so that the fabric can be attached as soon as possible. Below you can see a picture of Paul welding the beams together on the cafe deck. We have also received the roll down shutters and are working on installing those as we speak.

The parking lot gravel has been distributed and it looks great.

What a wonderful view we have!!

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Monday, February 12, 2007

The crew was downsized last week so that only our skilled trade men are working now. The projects are coming along quickly and most are nearly complete. Once the awning has been installed the cafe deck in the image below will be a cool and shady place to eat in the morning.
In the images below you can see Edward working to finish the stairs that will lead from the store down to the cafe. Due to a lack of concrete we have been set back a bit but there are many other projects that can be tackled in the mean time.
The beams for the roof were lifted, cut, and welded into place last week as well. You can see below how this looks. Since then Paul, Cyrille, and Lennox have completed the attachment of the cross beams and are ready to install the plastic greenhouse material on the buildings and also between them on the larger roof area. The roof has gutter attachments and is tested for hurricane strength winds so it is ideal for our application on the site. The material is lightweight, durable, and allows for natural light penetration into the buildings. Above you can see Paul climbing to the top of the scaffolding to attach parts of the green house roofing system. You can also see the flowers attached to the roof, which is a Virgin Islands tradition any time you finish a roof in construction.
Cyrille and Paul have been working hard to set up both the male and female bathroom areas. They installed the partitions and are working with Maggie on the specs of the handicapped side of the stalls. The sinks and toilets are in as you can see. We just need the plumber to hook them all up to the water system and the sewer lines.

In the image below you can see that the railing installation is almost complete. In the background is Drunk Bay, which can be accessed from our campground by trail.Once we receieve concrete on Wednesday we will be able to attach the remaining sections of railing. The crew has also begun work on the lower staircase which will allow guests to climb up to the pavilion from the deck of the cafe (see below). The ice machine for the cafe will also be on the left in this area. Addisiah came down from Registration to check out the site. She was very impressed by the progress that has been made in the last few weeks. All the employees in the Campground can't wait to have a place to purchase drinks or food and just relax during lunch breaks.In the image below you can see Stafford and Bernard working to attach the last section of railing on the cafe level.

Our electrician Steve Slade from Pangea is working to run all of the wires in the store and cafe. He installed the ceiling fans in the cafe yesterday and they look very nice. Below he and Maggie take moment for a picture next to the breaker box in the store.

Eyeball Engineering allowed us to use their truck and forklift to transport the coolers for both the store and cafe up to the site. All of the crew worked to roll the coolers into their locations with ease. Below you can see the crew maneuvering the cooler across the deck and into the cafe area.

It was a tight fit but the coolers made it into their predetermined areas with ease. Once all of the breakers and outlets have been installed we will begin to set them up and test them all.Maggie is meeting with two of St. Johns finest native plant experts to plan for the native plant garden on the site. Once the plants have had a chance to catch themselves on our site locals will be able to visit Concordia to see how certain plants grow on the island in hopes that they too will replant their properties with native flora as well.Above you can see Gary Ray, Curtis from Heaven On Earth Landscaping, and Maggie on a tour of the site. In the background is Salt Pond Bay which can be seen from all levels of the pavilion site.

Cyrille an Paul have moved on to the insallation of the roof over the pump room on the Cafe level. On the left is the 6ft grill, which will be the main attraction of the cafe.

Progess is happening fast so check back soon!!

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