Grant money awarded!

Last week I received the following message from our representative at the Indiana Landmarks office:

The grant request for the Ahavath Scholom Temple was approved at a reduced level yesterday. Our Endangered Places Grant fund is unusually low this year and all requests that are coming in are facing reductions in the amount. The grant was approved for $1,750. 

While this certainly won't get the project to a set of construction drawings - working with an interested architect who may be willing to contribute some of their time - you should be able to get a good overview of the condition of the building and the potential for use as envisioned. 

Although we didn't receive all of the money we had hoped for, what great news! We are certainly able to obtain a survey by a building inspector, a stability status report from an historic preservationist, as well as a report from a structural engineer. We will begin working on these reports as soon as we receive the check from the Indiana Landmarks office which should be within the month. 

Grant Proposal Submitted!

After emailing off a batch of materials this morning, I received this message from our representative at the Indiana Landmarks office: "Got it. Looks excellent. I will get it submitted. We meet on March 14th and I'll follow up after that with you. Thanks for all the effort." 

Needless to say, I'm excited and thankful to everyone for helping me put together the grant materials! Here is a section from the grant proposal that details what we hope to accomplish with the $3,000 if awarded:

 This grant proposal targets the preparation needed before embarking on our project. Preparations include consulting a professional architectural team in cooperation with a structural engineer to conduct a feasibility study and facility assessment. Both of these studies are needed to determine the architectural stability of the building, including the stability status of the stained glass windows which are currently bowing, exterior brickwork which needs tuck-pointing, and the basement foundation which shows signs of leaking water. It will also help provide recommendations for bringing the building up to code, suggest solutions to accessibility concerns to the lower level, and determine the costs of renovating, and possibly expanding, the lower level.  The grant money will also help us begin to consult a museum exhibition designer to begin work on a concept-stage master plan. This master plan will determine our dollar per-square-foot of exhibits ratio and will also be a useful tool to use as we continue fundraising.