HBF and Community of Hope Complete Huge Renovation Project in the Hope House
It was a long road, but after eighteen monthsof permit review, seismic upgrades and a complete exterior makeover, Communityof Hope’s “Hope House” shelter in St. John’s looks brand new. Prior to becominga shelter for single parent households in 2016, HBF renovated the interior ofthe former 1950s-era block building. After receiving a $95,000 grant fromLowe’s in addition to $10,000 from the HBF in early 2018, the second phase workscope entailed replacing the aging roof, dry-rotten cedar cladding, old metalwindows and installing an AC system for the first time in its history.
In the wake of a 2018 City of Portlandresolution to enforce mandatory requirements for unreinforced masonry (URM)buildings and receiving a notice her building was on the URM database, shelterdirector, Linda Jo Devlaeminck decided it would be best to install seismicupgrades to protect the occupants of her eight bed shelter. A building scanfrom Carlson Testing determined that the building was actuallyunder-reinforced, meaning it had some rebar and grouted sections, but notenough to prevent the building from collapsing in the event of a catastrophicearthquake. HBF then reached out to John Voekel, owner of FrameworkEngineering, who came up with a quick plan (free of charge) how to reinforcethe building without blowing up the budget.
Despite delays in the City’s structural permitreview, builder captain Ilya Zagaryuk with UKA Construction, easily handledroof replacement and seismic retrofits during the rainy months of winter byinstalling a large make-shift tent on the large, flat roof. Other donorsstepped up to help with the project such as Cascade Windows, Westside Drywalland Insulation (insulation), Builders FirstSource (lumber), James Hardie(siding), Boise Cascade (plywood), and Behr (Paint). As a result of more than$75,000 of in-kind donations from the building community, Linda Jo was able tosqueeze in adding a second bathroom to the upstairs to cap off the hugeproject.
The formerly drab brown building is now brightblue, adorned with a new mural to replace the old one that faced the garden.Two interior murals were also provided by a generous grant from CBRE during thecourse of the project. Reflecting on the entirety of the project, Linda Josays, “It is amazing to me the number of people and companies that helped us todo this. Our relationship with the Home Builders Foundation and all those whosupport us though their connections has had a profound impact on our programand the families who live here.”