Property Update

For me, the bridge Annual General Meeting has become a time of reflection;  an opportunity to look at what has been accomplished for God’s kingdom over the past 12 months. Many challenges and successes have taken place, but what is most important is that we remain focused on God’s purposes for us—the Church.

Specific to our property at 5440 16th Avenue, looking back, 12 months had us ten months into what we had expected to be a 16-month project. The demolition portion of the project was complete, and a skeleton of the new building appeared. Structural steel columns were being erected, block walls were being constructed, and concrete ground floors were being poured. Our new home was beginning to take shape, and we expected to be in our new building this fall.

Fast forward to today and an enormous amount of progress has been made—just not at the expected pace. Earlier construction delays due to COVID-19-related restrictions and other factors pushed much of the concrete block wall construction into the winter. The cold winter, combined with labour shortages of bricklayers, meant that this critical construction function took much longer than anticipated. The accumulated net effect of construction delays now sees us being fully operational during the new year of 2023. We hope to have occupancy before then, which may enable the use of the building earlier for set-up and other limited purposes; however, it takes time to put the finishing touches on appurtenances such as furniture, window blinds, kids’ toys, etc., and to learn and perfect the new building control systems.

There is no denying that the inflationary pressures we have all experienced have also impacted our building project. We have had to deal with many trades and suppliers who have come back asking for additional money to offset the increase in costs that they are seeing. We have dealt with each one of those cases fairly, but with financial prudence. Despite these extra costs, we are still on track to complete the building within the budget established when construction started. Assuming this remains true and we achieve 100% of our capital campaign goal of raising $1.5 million, we would finish the project debt-free.

Despite the delay in our project and the additional costs, we have much to be thankful for. The building is progressing nicely and will be a wonderful space designed to connect people in community and with God. Our new facility will be a practical tool to facilitate relationship-building with each other and with the community. God will be glorified, and lives will be transformed. That is well worth the wait!

Since the project is nearing completion, I would like to recognize the incredible commitment of a large team of volunteers who have been involved throughout this process. This team has volunteered their time and expertise to see this project realized with no expectations other than to see God’s purposes realized in the community of Markham. My gratitude goes out to the Building Project Committee, the bridge Building Expansion Team, the Interior Design Team, the bridge Board, the staff and those who regularly gather to pray for us and this project. What is being built today is a tool that will enable the building of God’s kingdom for generations to come. There is no purpose more important than this. 

Blessings,

Kevin Aide

Chair of the Building Committee