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As we
consider our future plans, when should we contact IMF?
As soon as possible! Many serious
and costly mistakes are made very early in the process. It
is a lot easier to make changes when things are still in the
“idea stage” before property is purchased or plans have been
drawn. We prefer to begin our relationship early, even if
that first meeting is just to meet, share, and do a little
“brainstorming!”
What are
the costs for your services?
Since each project and scope of work
is different, the costs for each one of our services also
vary. After our first meeting, where we can learn the
specifics of your project, we will draw up a formal proposal for
the phase of work to be accomplished.
Is it
cheaper to remodel an existing building or build an all new
facility?
That depends. A minor remodel
can be a cost effective way of creating more usable space.
However in a major remodel your local building department can
require that the entire facility be brought up to current code.
If that is the case, new construction may actually cost less
money. (We can often give some direction on this matter on
our first visit.)
When do we
need to begin our fundraising campaign?
In our experience, people are more
willing to give to something they can see or envision. In
other words, the clearer the picture you paint of the project,
the more people are likely to get on board. Few people get
excited about giving to a “phantom” building program (that is
"someday we are going to build something"). We recommend
at least having completed a preliminary design with floor plans
of the interior and colored artists drawings of the exterior to
show exactly “what” you are building, and an accompanying cost
estimate to answer the question of “how much.”
How much
land do we need to build a new facility?
Naturally there a lots of variables,
but our “rule of thumb” is that for every 100-125 people you
wish to seat in your sanctuary, you will need one usable acre of
land. Therefore if your facility needs to seat 500 people,
you will need at least 4-5 acres to allow for the building,
parking, and the required landscaping.
We’ve heard
a lot about metal buildings, are they more economical?
There is a lot of hype about metal
buildings. Some companies are advertising like crazy in
the media. They often quote a very low “per square foot”
cost for a building, but in the “fine print” you will notice
that the price is for just a shell. We had a church ask
about the difference, so we did a cost comparison using the same
set of plans, with three different construction methods.
We compared a metal building, concrete block, and “stick built”
wood framing. When all was said and done, the difference
was less than 5%! We don’t have a vested interest in any
of the above methods, we consider all viable options.
What
Geographical regions do you work in?
Our offices are located in the
Portland, Oregon area, so historically most of our work has been
in the northwest (Washington, Oregon and Idaho), but we have
been involved in a number of projects; north to Alaska, south to
California, and east to Colorado. We are getting an
increasing number of requests from churches all over the map for
our consultation and planning services.
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