In, Out, Up, Down

Lots happening on all fronts despite the weather. Starting at the front of the theater, the men are finishing up a narrow ditch that will carry rain water from the roof to the detention pond nearby. On top of the theater lobby just above the ditch, men are laying the insulation blocks and membrane on that roof. The photo was taken from Heritage Hall roof pretty much on the same level and right up against the new roof. Looking down on the gym annex roof, we can see the frames for the HVAC (heating, ventilating, air-conditioning) units that will arrive up there in a few weeks. This raising will require the return of the crane.

Back inside the theater, the men have placed some of the wall framing that will run from the back of the theater to the stage. The passageway thus produced will allow actors and crew to move back and forth without the audience being distracted. On the outside of the theater near the southwest corner of the building, can now be seen the sign stating what the building is. Not as big as the Hemmer and Sturm signs, but finally it's there. Eventually it will be replaced by a more fitting identification for the school so it can be easily read from the expressway. That will be a halleluia moment, one of many to come!

Up On The Housetop, Out In The Front

What has happened up on the housetop? Very much. Have you ever wondered how many layers are on the roof of a large building? Just what is up above the ceiling panels you see? Well, lots of layers of stuff. As you know (if you've been following the blogs), the first thing put on the theater after the trusses are put in place, are the acoustical decking pieces. Recall that these are corrugated and perforated. What make the decking acoustical are the strips of yellow inserts you see being laid in the grooves of the decking--these absorb the sound that will penetrate the ceiling of the theater. Other acoustical material will be hung inside the theater, but that takes us ahead of our story. After the yellow strips are laid, panels of gypsum sheathing--brown boards--are placed, also sound absorbing (lots of sound coming from inside!), then styrofoam insulation panels are placed, and finally the membrane that covers all. Whew! Let's hope it all stays up. Just kidding! Since the men walked around on the corrugated, perforated decking before these other layers were added, prospects are good.

On the front of the theater lobby which will be mostly glass, you can see the framework that will hold the facing above the glassed area. On the roof of the annex, finished now, you can see the framework for the "fence" that will hide the air conditioning unit for the gym and the annex. You can observe the same kind of hiding device on the roof of CCH and many other buildings. Most operations will be moving inside soon, and the way the workmen are bundled up, it looks like that can't come soon enough.

Cat Walks and Hands Dance

The inside of the theater is just that, the inside, out of sight to the casual observer, but the scene of labor nonetheless. The catwalks are visible in the photo, but will be in the dark when “the play’’s the thing.” More drama is obvious on the outside as the gym annex gets its metal. Truss rising, signals given from the ground and from the rooftop, beam placed--all in one act. Notice that in two photos a man giving hand signals to the crane operator. (Those who don't speak the language need not apply.) Applause for the workmen, the engineers, the site manager and for God, the Maker and Gifter of them all.

Another Week Down (Actually Up!)

Much has been accomplished in the past week as walls are dressed in brick and the whole of the construction takes on a more definitive appearance. The large opening in the front wall of the theater will remain until the floor work on the inside is completed. One sign of work moving indoors appears in the form of the bundles of yellow insulation. Hopeful sign!

The field has received more definition with the addition of a large sign that all can see as they come down Hilton Dr. and turn the corner to cross the parking lot. Our maintenance has lined the soccer-field-to-be so that it looks more like its future self for Open House this Sunday. Future Pandas are coming, and we want them to catch a glimpse of what they can expect. Nothing like whetting the appetite!

A World Of Angles

So much of this construction revolves around rectangles, it seems. Once the work with dirt (filling the gulley) was finished—work that couldn’t be confined to geometric boundaries as we usually think of them—we’ve been in the realm of 90 degree angles. Tennis courts (here getting fenced), the theater lobby (getting enclosed with roofing--not really on its side!), the gym annex (walls up) are all being defined clearly as rectangles.

The photo taken inside the theater proper—the one in which you see the light and shadow on the wall-- demonstrates the interesting aspect of the different type of roof decking used on this part of the building. Since acoustics is so important in theaters, the builders use acoustical decking which has holes in it. The grooves in the corrugated panels are filled with a material that will absorb the sound and prevent unwanted resonance and echoes. Whoever would have thought…?

Something Old, Something New; Something Hidden Now in View

From old to new: the old tennis court is loosing its fencing and will soon be ready for parking. The academy's own maintenance people are taking care of this job. The new courts have all the poles in place and await a paint job that will define the courts and bring them to requirements in size and color. As you can see, fencing is still needed. This is a sort of ground hog view of the area.
The annex is revealing much more of its inner structure with its rooms and passageways being defined as the men lay the concrete blocks. Around the corner, the roof is just about defined by the beams that are almost all in place in the photo. Easily seen are the way the beams fit into the wall. Once in, they are bolted in place which means that the i-beams must have holes in the right places when they leave the foundry, and the masons must know where to leave holes in the walls. The pre-planning is phenomenal. The crane, a smaller one again, is sitting firmly in place in the area of the main entrance to the theater. One can imagine crowds in its place in the not too distant future. Good things come to those who wait in patience--for us now, and for the crowds of the future.

Up On The Housetop...

And now for the metal decking (corrugated panels being put on the top of the trusses). These panels will be welded to the trusses, and will support the membrane that comes next in the roofing process. Is there any order in which the decking panels are placed? It doesn't seem so at this stage, but they will cover the whole top of the theater eventually. The beams for the lobby roof will be arriving this week. Then the whole theater will be in various stages of being roofed. Under the roofing as it is now, we can see a good deal of the cat walks. It's easiest to make out on the stage, which is what you see in one of the photos, but the catwalk extends out over the audience area because of the lighting that will be fixed to beams out there. Working the lights will be an adventure in itself.

The other act that is developing on the site is the progressive rising of the gym annex walls. This part of the construction also promises to be under roof very soon . Up on the hill all the poles are up on the tennis court, and, contrary to what was recorded here several days ago, the fencing will be brand new. The usable fencing from the old courts will be used at the east end of the track area. Moving right along....