Swannanoa 4H Center

Talk about a white Christmas!

2010-12-28T08:27:00.000-08:00

What a beautiful site, we're happy tonight...walking in a winter wonderland!

We got 6-8 inches of beautiful snow on Christmas Day and the following day. Mike, Sammie and I had to leave TN early to make it home. :-( We barely made it home in time for the weather to get REALLY bad! We bundled Sammie up for her first play in the snow and enjoyed our time together.

The sun is out now and it is starting to melt but it sure was pretty!

Almost Done!!!

2010-12-10T06:18:00.000-08:00

The Lodge was supposed to be finished this month, but there is still a little left to do. It is VERY close though! It looks beautiful too! It looks almost like it used to, but better! I'll walk you through it...

The Kitchen:

OMG... the kitchen was gutted and the floorplan switched. The idea is that the Teaching Kitchen wing may eventually get equipment and will then be able to access the cleaning part of the kitchen, storage and fridge/freezer without having to go through the entire kitchen. We just got all new equipment too! A new oven with burners, a brazon tilt skillet, a new warmer and a NEW DISHWASHER (that is square!). The big windows now have roll up doors so they do not run the risk of falling and landing on someone.

The Main Lodge Dinning Room:

This area is the last to complete because they want to refinish the floors as the last thing. They have removed and re-placed the trim around the windows and added blinds. They have removed and moved a few doors. They have installed the HVAC ducts and are waiting on the lights. They should be here next week. They have added a large storage area at the far end of the dinning hall to put chairs, tables and rental equipment. The will be touching up the face of the fireplace to fill in cracks...I think we will be moving to gas log for a few reasons: 1) We have an intense fire suppression system now and do not want to trigger it 2) the flumes were very damaged and cannot affordably be fixed. Meaning there would be smoke leaked into the dining hall, thus setting off the sprinklers.

The Officers Lounge/Chestnut Room:

The history in this room was very important to preserve. They had to take the roof off for structural reasons and also the walls. The saved the panelling to re-hang. They wanted the roof to be the same height as the rest of the Lodge so they raised it a few feet. This left a gap between the existing panelling and the new roof. It will be painted a cream color like the matching wings. They did exposed beams and black hardware and it looks amazing!

The New Addition:

There was 40 square feet of additional space added on, it includes a bathroom for each gender and a new camp store. The old deck was also taken off and a new wrap around deck was built with composit boards make from recycled plastic.

Getting Closer!

2010-11-19T11:34:00.000-08:00

Every time I go into the lodge is looks better and better. The kitchen actually looks like a kitchen now! It has white shiney walls and tile! It looks so nice! It has a metal pull down window cover now instead of the heavy wood ones on the hinge so we can actually get meals ready and then open the window. So much better! There is also an office for the kitchen manager and staff to use!

The "teaching kitchen" that is where my office used to be will not have any equipment in it right now. We will need to get funding to purchase the equipment. As of right now, it will be left rough ended, meaning the pipes and fixtures are sticking out of the wall alittle bit so that the equipment can be installed easily when it is available. Until then, we will use it as another meeting space or classroom. They have started to put the trim up also. I can't wait to see what it looks like against the wood panelling in the main dining room area!

The Officers Lounge, bathrooms and the new camp store look great too! We will post more pics as they get more donw with them.

More Lodge Progress

2010-10-19T11:26:00.000-07:00

The Main Lodge is coming along beautifully! It is alittle behind schedule unfortunately but making progress daily. They thought it would be done mid-Nov but has been pushed to the end of Dec now. It is a bummer that we will miss the entire Christmas season of rentals, but I would rather it all be done right.

They have started painting the Lodge and it is starting to look like it's old self again...only nicer. They poured the concrete stairs and ramp in the back porch area and have started re-laying the stones. They have intalled the walk-in fridge AND freezers and they are huge!

Going, Going, Gone

2010-10-19T11:14:00.000-07:00

We had a large piece of history come down. Behind the Main Lodge we had a Big Oak tree that had died and was making us nervous with all the new construction. We called out East Valley Tree and they did a fantastic job of safely removing the tree without any damage to the surrounding buildings. They then carved the stump into a chair so that campers can continue to enjoy the Big Oak in a different way for many years to come! They also took down a big pine behind the Mountain View Lodge and a few other trees around the property for safety.

Summer Progress-part 3

2010-09-10T08:55:00.000-07:00

We had the Day of Caring this past week where United Way partners businesses with local non-profits to come and do projects for a day. The Asheville Metro Sewer's Facilities Maintenance Department came out for the day and built us a beautiful amphitheater in the woods and stained the addition to the back deck of the Mountain View Lodge.

We picked out the location for the amphitheater about a year ago, but with no maintenance help I was not sure we would be able to get it finished. There was only 5 of them but they got more done in one day then I could have ever imagined. They cleared the area, built a fire ring, built a stage and built 9-10 benches. Once they finished that, they stained the back deck in less than an hour!!! We are SO impressed with these guys and are go appreciative of their generosity!

The lighting was not the best when I was taking pictures so it may be hard to see the amphitheater, I will try to get some one on a cloudier day.

Summer Progress-part 2

2010-09-10T07:06:00.000-07:00

Our big project is our Main Lodge...thinking of calling the the Chestnut Lodge once we re-open it. It would give us an opportunity to use Chestnut from the "Wormy Chestnut" in the Lounge side but not have wormy in there. There has been alot of progress over the summer. They have the supports for the new wrap around porch done. It is huge! And it is going to be great. The front entrance now has double doors and the gable is twice the size. The porch will wrap around the building to the right and go to another deck in the back right corner leading up to the Rec Hall.

The siding is going up right now. They are using a "concrete" siding so that it will not deteriorate over time. It will be stained the same color as before so that it matches the cabins also.

The roofing is going on right now too. It is a metal roof in a champagne color. They voted me out of the green roof and I agree that it will accent the trees and make it cooler in the summer. It is the same color as the trim on the building, as well as, the trim on the new cabins and the benches on the existing cabins.

The interior of the lodge is taking shape also. I can see where everything is going to go and how it is going to come together once done. The kitchen is huge! and it is switched from before so that the cooking side is on the left and the cleaning side is on the right. We are gaining 2 large bathrooms and the offices we have decided will become the camp store. We think it will be a good place to offer cantina every day, it will also be in a good location to have it open during some events for people to purchase shirts, coffee mugs, snacks, etc during their event.

Summer Progress-part 1

2010-09-10T06:47:00.000-07:00

Cabins Complete! This summer was our first summer using our new cabins. They are beautiful! The porch gives a wonderful place for campers to congregate and the facilities are a big improvement from the rustic seasonal ones. The only down fall of them is that they are sort of hot in the summer. They are insulated for year round use and that insulation works very well! The sky lights are beautiful and work very well, the light they let in makes it so we do not needs lights most of the day. That light also comes with heat though and that heat gets trapped in there. We will be brainstorming ideas for next summer to help keep it cooler in there...thin shades that pull over the sky light from the inside that let in indirect light, window fans, etc. Any ideas are greatly appreciated!

Cabins-bunkbeds arrived!

2010-06-09T11:48:00.000-07:00

We have so much going on right now I am going to post a few things...

The Cabins are 95% complete! The bunkbeds arrived today and are being assembled and the mattresses arrive tomorrow! They look SO amazing! It is hard to believe that the old cabins are under there somewhere.

New Ropes Courses!

2010-06-09T11:33:00.000-07:00

As part of the reallocating of land, we are getting ownership of the Climbing Tower that we share with Camp Woodson. We also got a new High Ropes Course and a new Low Ropes Course. Both of these courses are built with the same elements but will be with new material so they will last longer. They are also centrally located for ease of use. We will continue to share the courses with Camp Woodson.

Indian Cabin relocation

2010-06-09T10:16:00.000-07:00

The Indian Cabin is being relocated to another area of camp and the process it goes through is really quite interesting. They started by numbering each piece of wood and taking it apart log by log. They have removed the porch and the roof. The whole top floor is gone also. When they take it apart, they pay each section in it's own pile and move it pile by pile to the new area for re-assembly.

Lodge Progress

2010-06-09T09:43:00.000-07:00

The Lodge is getting more attention now that the cabins are almost done. They have let the foundations on the 2 new sides and have started the flooring for both. The back wing that is going to be the teaching kitchen has had screening filled and packed and they are starting the concrete floors. The addition with the bathrooms has had the foundation set and the subfloors are coming along. They started scrapping shingles off today too.

Looking Good!

2010-05-17T11:09:00.001-07:00

Well we are getting close to the cabins being done and they are looking fabulous! The walls are painted in the sleeping areas, the bathroom walls and tiles are finished and the floors were stripped and finished this weekend. I was amazed to see how good the floors looked, I am hoping that we can gradually do the same for the remaining cabins over the next few years.

The braces for the benches on the front porch have been installed and painted. One of the cabins has the screened doors on the front porch installed too. The concrete ADA parking spaces and ramps have been poured. This week we have the punchlist checklist meeting, so we can see how much is left.

The bunkbeds and mattresses have been ordered. They are the same as the ones in the Mountain View Lodge (formerly the Staff House). They will be in a natural Honey Oak finish with navy blue mattresses.

MVL is complete & cabins are coming along

2010-04-27T09:47:00.000-07:00

The Mountain View Lodge is now complete! They added doors onto the living room area and the kitchen entrance from the main hallway. They added a new layer of drywall to the entire living room area and mezzanine. The upgrades were required by the Fire Marshal for our occupancy numbers. It gives the bedrooms some more privacy and it looks great!

The Cabins are moving along at lightening speed as usual. They have painted the exterior of one of the cabins, have the skylights in and have began the interior insulation. They have also started the benches that will line the inside of the screened in porches.

The Lodge is not slated to be complete before camp starts so they are focusing all their efforts on the cabins till they are done. Until then, they are doing demo and getting the foundational stuff done in the lodge. They have found some floor issues where the old walk-in cooler was and they keep running into underground springs that have to be redirected so the footers can be poured for the foundations. Look what color the lodge used to be!

What a difference a few weeks makes...

2010-04-12T09:42:00.000-07:00

While I was on maternity leave I took pictures of all the progress. Sorry I couldn't get them posted before now. The Mountain View Lodge (formerly the Staff House) had to be shut down AGAIN to br upgraded to a higher burn rating. We had to have an extra layer of drywall in the main living room area, new doors and door frames to the main rooms, doors added to the living room area and more work to the sprinkler and fire alarm system They are doing the final inspection right now and hopefully we will have this mess done & completed!

The cabins are moving along VERY quickly. The internal framing and initial plumbing is coming along. They have started the siding, the railings on he porch and the roofing on the girl's side. The boys side is alittle behind where the girls are but still on shedule. Both sides have the windows and HVAC equipment installed.

The Lodge is being whittled away in efforts to begin the rebuild. The back wing where the offices were is gone, as well as, the entire front porch. The footers are in the beginning phases to be set for the addition of the bathrooms. The kitchen has been gutted down to the studs and is ready to start over.

The lodge has been started

2010-03-05T14:57:00.000-08:00

The lodge has been started and it is coming along as quickly as the cabins! The propane tanks and electricity were taken out this week making room for the grading to start. Several trees have been removed from the sides of the lodge for the building to expand onto. The front porch is starting to disappear also. The graders are working on leveling it out from the lodge to the parking lot where the old staff house stood. It is a bit muddy but looking good.

The cabins are also coming along. The ply wood is going up on the second cabin to cover the framing and now you can see the actually shape or footprint of the cabins. They are looking great!

They also started the work we have to have done on the Mountain View Lodge (formerly the Staff House). It has to have some dry wall work done for fire codes. They brought in massive sheets of dry wall yesterday and had to use a boom to lift them up and over the railing to the main floor. It was interesting to see!

Walls go up, walls come down...

2010-03-01T07:22:00.000-08:00

This week we have had lots of progress on the cabins. We have one getting the new porch roof put on and the other getting plywood walls put on. They are already looking so much better. They are starting to look like the designs and I think everyone is going to be very impressed with them.

The demo has started on the lodge. The Maggie room is now a thing of the past..sniff, sniff! They have already gutted the wing with our offices and are going to start demo on that soon. They are waiting on the gas tanks to be removed (Wed) to start the grading and demo. The one and only bathroom in the building now has a "view" and will probalby be gone this week!

Walls are coming along!

2010-02-25T06:44:00.000-08:00

The framing is going up fast! I was very surprised when I saw plywood going up on one of them also. They have taken the ceilings off of where the old bathrooms were also so it is opening up nicely. The ceiling in the cabins will be vaulted with skylights to allow natural lighting during the day, thus reducing energy use and cost.

The bathrooms in the existing 6 cabins are also coming along. The new stalls are in and they are starting to clean up. The fixtures have not been replaced yet because they are going to match the rest of the cabins and the lodge.

Flooring ans walls starting to go up!

2010-02-12T08:20:00.000-08:00

The snow has been flying and the temperatures are super cold but the progress is still moving forward at at a steady pace. The ground is frozen and they are having to jack hammer 14-16 inches into the frozen ground just to get the footers set. They have started the walls on one side and the add on floors.

We are going to gradually move the electricity to underground for safety and maintenance purposes. The cabins are on lots of large rocks so doing this has proven to bit a bit of a challenge also but it coming along very well with some ingenuity.

The camp road has taken some wear and tear with all the moisture and heavy trucks so we are doing what we can to try to grade it in between freezings. We have asked H&M to help us out with gravel also.

Showers have arrived!

2010-02-05T08:42:00.000-08:00

Even with this nasty weather, this construction crew (H&M) is on the ball! They have been working in super cold weather and snow and we APPRECIATE their work! The footers for the new areas in the front of the cabins were poured last week and this week they started the flooring. This will eventually be a large screened in porch that both sides of the cabin will share.

To my excitement, I looked out and saw these white cubed standing in front of the cabins yesterday. When I got closer I realized they are SHOWER STALLS for the remaining 6 cabins!! They are white and SO MUCH better than the 50+ year old galvanized ones. I didn't realize how much they were going to have to tear up to remodel, nor did I realize they were going to do them so fast! I am excited to see what they will look like!

Concrete going in!

2010-01-15T12:18:00.000-08:00

This week has been very exciting, they have dug through 16-18 inches of frozen ground to get the footers set. They started pouring the concrete today. The pump went out on the concrete truck so they had to haul it in wheel barrells. The back walls are half gone in preperation for the additions on the back also. It is crazy to see!

Cabins have begun!!!

2010-01-06T08:52:00.000-08:00

Wow, this construction company is great! They started the cabins a few weeks before the holidays and have worked almost every day...in 10 degree weather even! H&M construction won both the contracts for the cabins and the lodge and we are very excited to have the continuity for both projects. They have gutted the cabins and taken off the baton parts of the siding. There is a large hole in the floor where the bathrooms used to be and the porches have been removed. H&M has moved a temp office in between all the projects and he workers have been very polite and friendly. We will be updating the progress of both of these projects on here every few weeks so check back for more info and pictures!

More Furnishings!

2009-03-31T11:01:00.000-07:00

This past week we have had more furnishings delivered! We got the big mission style chairs for each room, the sofa and living room stuff and the conference room table sand chairs. It looks great! We sill have a few more things to do and we may move the layout in 2 of the rooms but it is getting so close!

We are almost there!

2009-03-17T06:48:00.001-07:00

I know it has been a while since I posted last, but there was not alot going on with the winter weather. But we have some exciting things occurring now, we have bunk beds!!!! They company who won the "bid" went above and beyond to get them made and to us in 2 weeks! They had a flat tire and arrived late but stayed until 5am the next day to get them installed before our first group arrived. They are beautiful!

We are still waiting on the mattresses to get done b/c they have to order the green material for the covers. For the current rental group we had to move the older mattresses from the cabins over till they are done.

The living room furniture is almost finished and should be delivered in a few weeks.

Appliances have arrived!

2009-01-15T07:29:00.000-08:00

We got the kitchen appliances here and installed over the holidays and they look great! We opted for stainless steel b/c it is easier to keep clean. We went with a dual domestic convection oven that will make it a breeze for our rentals to cook for their groups.

We are in the process for getting the bunkbeds and sofas here. Hopefully they will be ordered and her in the next month! We will keep you posted!

Furniture, Appliances, Final Touches...oh my!

2008-12-10T09:00:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the delay in updates. With holidays, getting camp more winterized and rentals I let myself get behind on updates for the staff house. Not to worry though, it is still making good progress. We are working hard to get the appropriate accounts set up for appliances and I am trying even harder to understand the University system for purchasing furniture.

We are looking at wooden bunkbeds for the rooms to get maximum occupancy. Each room will have wooden cubbies for belongings. These are easier to keep clean and will hopefully match the wood of the beds. There will be a large chair in each room also.

The appliances have been a bit of a challenge. We are looking at Energy Saver equipment that has a stainless finish so it does not show dirt as easily. We have found all the items we want and are waiting on the account so we can get them and have them delivered.

We want to make the solar power a teaching tool for campers and user groups. To do this, we will need to get some additional elements to make teaching happen. Thanks to John Vining and Ken Kindly for their help in making that happen.

Carpet is going in!

2008-11-11T10:32:00.000-08:00

This past week, some of the finishing touches are happening to the staff house. They were prepping for the carpet to go in and finishing the "punch list" for the paint. They deck was stained and the railing was painted green.

We should have the appliances installed by the end of next week and will be looking for an occupancy soon!

We marked several scrub pines that we want to take out so we can do some nice landscaping with native trees and plants. Who wouldn't want to sit in a rocking chair on the deck and look out at the view below? Imagine it mixed with lots of dogwoods in bloom...

We are wanting to name the staff house something other than "staff house" if you have any suggestions, let me know!

Laying the road

2008-10-27T09:29:00.000-07:00

This last week, they laid the base for the road that will go up to the back accessible entrance and the parking area out front.

The propane tank was brought in and put into the ground. This will create a climate controlled environment so that the ceiling tiles can go in now.

They also did some interior stuff like the beautiful stair railing and painting.

I am making more progress on the furniture. I have compiled a list of things we will be buying and am now gong through the state contracts to figure out where to buy it from.

Concrete & Connections

2008-10-20T09:30:00.000-07:00

There has been lots of progress from the outside! They poured the concrete that connects the building to the parking area. This has a slight grade so it provides a "ramp" to the Wellness Center. This also made it possible to start the outside stairs that will connect the floors in the front of the building, they look great!

The heating units (5 of them) have been brought in and placed on their slab. We are waiting on the propane tank to get buried so we can actually have some heat. We have to wait on that so we can get a climate controlled space so we can finish the ceiling tiles.

The leaves are turning and it is beautiful!

Water & Power!

2008-10-13T09:45:00.000-07:00

The 6 inch water line has been put in finally. The yard at the Directors house and the lower parking area was torn up to finish the connection. We are going to use this opportunity to do some needed landscaping in that area. It is the first thing you see when you enter the property so it should present itself in a welcoming and polished manner.

The large vault for the camps new water connection is in. It will require some creative landscaping to disguise it. It is bigger than they made it sound, sticks up above the grade, is right in front of the lodge/old pool area and is quite an eye soar. The good thing about it (and one reason it is so big) is that this is going to be our only metering point for the whole camp. It will allow up to tap into the line anywhere below it without the long permitting process and extra costs. It will also keep us from having more of these vaults all over the place when new buildings and things are put in. So in the big scheme of things, it will be better for the camp and you will not really know it is there when we get done landscaping it.

The electric has been connected to the house now! It is cool to see the lights illuminating from the house in the mornings.

We want to rename the Staff House to something more user friendly and appealing to groups. We thought of Hickory Hideaway or Hickory Hollow since there are lots of hickory trees around it. If anyone has any suggestions, let me know!

Solar panels, water and flooring, Oh My!

2008-09-23T08:38:00.001-07:00

At the end of last week the solar panels were installed on the roof. They look small compared to the rest of the building, but I am sure they are powerful! It may take a week or so to get them hooked up and functional. We are wanting to use them as teaching tools for the kids on how solar power works!

The big water line that has kept us waiting for so long is almost ready to connect! They have been digging rather large holes and ditches along the road to lay a 6 inch water line. They started at the staff house and worked their way back to the parking area in front of our house. They are almost connected! When they do finally tap into the water line, we will let you know if the pressure blows the roof off or not..ha ha!

They also put most of the hard wood flooring in over the weekend and it looks beautiful! The combination of hardwood and ceramic tile looks great. We are in the process of picking out the furniture and fabrics right now!

Floors are going in!

2008-09-17T07:26:00.000-07:00

These last few weeks have been very busy at the staff house and here at camp. The ceramic tiles went in and the "rubbery" tiles for the wellness center were laid. They look great! It is starting to really come together!

The installable permanent furnishings have been delivered and are being hung in the rooms also. There is a big back hoe out in front of the staff house too digging a large ditch for the new WATER LINE! Yeah, that stag was cleared up finally!

I have been told that the cabinets in the kitchen are being hung right now and that the permanent power line should be going in this week. I am narrowing down furniture options also so we can start to order bunk beds, couches, etc. soon.

Doors are being hung...

2008-09-04T11:43:00.000-07:00

We have the United Way Day of Caring today. We have ~35-40 volunteers out here right now and they are clearing & building 3 new elements on the low ropes course, starting to widen and clear the logging road for the new entrance road and they repainted the rec hall bathrooms. Things are looking better and better every day thanks to our volunteer groups!

As for the staff house, it looks like everything is on schedule now. The water permit is straight with the City of Asheville now. The doors came in and are being hung...they look awesome! I love the light pine look. Most of the fixtures are in and the ceiling in the downstairs is going up. They said that they are starting the floors next week. It is all coming together!

Interior work

2008-08-12T17:29:00.000-07:00

There has been some progress in the interior in the past few weeks. They have finished most of the dry wall and have started painting the main and mezzanine floors.

There has not been much done in the past week so we are constantly looking for new things. Now the "visible progress" is reduced. When they are framing and siding you can tell at the end of the day that something major has occurred. With all of the details going in, it is harder to see that. We know they are still chipping away at it and will hopefully be able to order furniture...soon!

Interior Progress!

2008-07-24T16:39:00.000-07:00

We are starting to see progress on the inside now too! They have got the insulation in and have started on the drywall/sheet rock. They have finished most of the exterior painting and it is starting to look like the drawings. We are having an Open House of sorts this Sunday starting at 5pm and we are trying to get it "gussied up" for that.

Exterior progress

2008-07-07T18:42:00.000-07:00

We we have some obvious exterior progress happening to the staff house. They have finished a beautiful railing on the wrap around porch. They have put doors in and they are trying out colors on the side. They only did one side so it still looks alittle weird, but even slow progress is still progress!

Camp is going great! The kids are having a fun time and all are safe and happy!

First week of camp!

2008-06-27T17:37:00.001-07:00

Sorry for the delay folks, but after 3 years the cabins are again filled with laughter and excitement! With all the preparation for our first campers I let the staff house settle on the back burner. During that time progress seemed to go very slowly so you haven't missed much. The siding finally started this last week and is already 99% complete! The windows are in too! Now that there is some visible progress I can resume the photo talking. Enjoy! Hopefully there will be even more visible progress next week! Until then, look at all the campers we had last week!

WOW!!!

2008-04-28T14:27:00.000-07:00

We had yet another clean-up day this weekend and this time we had 13 people show up!!! Big thanks to Linda Semon, Daniel, Calib and Joshua from Yancey County. Roger from the community and a few others stopped by. We got alot done and the place is looking great! We still have more to go and another clean-up day this Sunday. If you get a chance, stop by to help!

The staff house is amazing! They have part of the roof done and part of the front deck also! I can't believe they have gotten so far in such a little time. I can't wait to see what gets done this week!

I think they may do it!

2008-04-21T11:59:00.000-07:00

They said 10 days and I thought they were kidding! Look at it! They should have the roof on in the next few days! I can't believe how fast that went up, it was a regular "barn raising" huh? They worked all day both Saturday AND Sunday and it sounds like a bee hive down there.

The clean up this weekend had another depressing turn out. My Mom and her husband drove up from Tennessee to help and they were the only ones who showed up. We removed dirty screens and stained buildings. They were a HUGE help but it was a bummer that no one else showed up. Maybe NEXT Saturday some people will come and help out.

10 Days and counting!

2008-04-14T10:55:00.000-07:00

They started framing this weekend and they tell me they will have it dine in 10 days! I was alittle skeptical until I looked at it last night...they were walking around on the second floor! As you can see they have already made HUGE progress in just 3 days!

Our first clean-up weekend was sort of disappointing, our neighbor Jeff was the only one who showed up. We got ALOT done though. My husband, Jeff and myself managed to fill an entire roll-off dumpster with old furniture & the stuff from the program shelters. We now have 2 great spots...one for the Nature Nook (eco-stuff and stream stompin') and one for the art area (cool name has yet to be thought of). The place is already looking so different. WE HAVE ANOTHER CLEAN-UP DAY ON SATURDAY FROM 10AM-5PM. If you can come, even for a few hours please stop by!

We have a slab!

2008-04-08T16:42:00.000-07:00

I am sorry that this is alittle late, but up until today there as not much to update you on. The sprinkler guys hit a few of the existing lines so that was slow going, but that should be fixed right now. This morning I went down to the site and there was a fresh slab of wet concrete curing. Once this is finished the framers can start! I can't wait to start putting pictures of the progress up now, it will look alot different every week b/c framing can go quickly.

Plumbing laid

2008-03-31T10:23:00.000-07:00

This last week was alittle slow. They got the plumbing laid and had to wait to get it inspected. Now they are waiting for the sprinkler people to tear up the ground and lay the water/sprinkler lines. Today they had all kinds of big equipment out there to start and had a busted part on their back-hoe. That has been fixed and now they are making some progress.

They had trusses delivered today for the frames. They cannot start framing until the plumbing is done, the peastone is spread and the concrete is done. Hopefully that will happen quickly now that the equipment is fixed.

It's getting bigger!

2008-03-24T06:41:00.001-07:00

I went down to the jobsite on Friday to see large metal supports standing that will run from the ground up! It looks like the windows they had braced last week now have more concrete blocks on top of them. They said that the electricitans and plumbers will be coming in to lay anything that neds to go below the "slab" that they will pour. Hopefully they have favorable weather this week so that can be poured and set.

We are also setting up work weekends the last 3 weekends in April for anyoneto come and help at. Bring your family, bring your club, bring anyone! The more hands the better!

The walls are growing!

2008-03-17T09:07:00.000-07:00

The walls are growing! See we even have windows starting to form now. Everyday I go down there it seems to be growing faster and faster. This week they are trying to get the foundational parts finished so they can move on to the walls. Hopefuly the weather willb e nice this whole week so they can get alot of good work days in!

A wall is forming!

2008-03-10T08:31:00.000-07:00

Last week was very exciting! Big loads of concrete blocks were delivered. A big dump truck full of sand arrived also. I got to actually dump the sand myself! It was fun! I was told that the sand is mixed into the mortar to make it smooth. This mortar then acts like glue and the blocks can be up together like a puzzle. This will go to make the main back wall. The concrete blocks will go up about 12-15 ft and serve to protect the foundation when the ground dirt is filled back in. The blocks are stacked, lined with re-rod and filled with concrete from above. (I saw a big concrete truck as I came into work this morning!) Once this is done, the "stick building" can commence!

We have concrete!

2008-03-03T08:31:00.000-08:00

This last week you can start to see some progress. The "footers" were poured and I can see the foundation of our new building start to take shape! Word on the site is that once the foundation gets poured and cured then the walls will be up in no time. I am hoping that the donuts on Fridays will help motive them...keep your fingers crossed and keep checking back for more updates every Monday!

Breaking Ground...no really!!

2008-02-24T16:49:00.000-08:00

For those who have kept the faith and the hope alive that Swannanoa would once again open it's doors and thrive...time has finally come! I would like to introduce myself, I am Maggie (aka. Buster) and I am the new Center Director. My husband and I have relocated from Colorado and love the area. I grew up in Tennessee and am thrilled to be back closer to home. I am a camp "lifer" and I am VERY excited to help get Swannanoa back on it's feet.

I will be posting the progress of Swannanoa each week so anyone and everyone can see all the progress and get excited about summer 2008!