Fresh out of the most productive meeting of the Fabric Committee so far re; The Building@St. Denys. M and F acknowledged that we haven't presented a coherent, professional act yet and we need to do this in order to reassure DO-N at the university that we do still wnat to proceed with their original plan for the project.
In a nutshell we envisage the following:
St Denys PCC will fund the repairs to electrics and drainage over the next six weeks, which is sufficient to make the building safe to accommodate the Easter Service on 16th April. In advance of this, we will leaflet the parish and put up posters inviting people to register an interest of whatever kind (financial, practical, anecdotal etc) in the re-development of the Church Building. We will also look to raise the £400 necessary to service and re-tune the 17th Century wallace organ that is our peize possession.
Thus at Easter we have a viable building which we can offer to D O-N and the Music Dept for organ practice, choir rehearsal etc etc. The rental they pay for this will be in lieu of Hogbin's fundraising fee.
Longer term we will set up a Friends Group, the management committee of qwhich will consist of ourselves, D O-N presumably and one other of his department. The Friends themselves will be members of the local community, businesses etc who want to contribute time and resources to the project.
We can't lease the building to the Universty for a million ecclesiastical reasons that are massively complicated, essentially because no money can change hands if we do this and the lessor has to have exclusive use of the facilities. So we have to look at a rental arrangement - and hence the above fundraisers salary.
They bring her and whatever funds she can get. We offer a Victorian 2* listed church building with better acoustics than any other space of its kind in the city (and a £3M re-build value), an organic of 'significant quality and historical value', car parking for up to 20 cars and the skills, resources and histroical knowledge of a PCC member with 25 years experience preserving historical building sfor a local council.
I can expect an email on Tuesday from the Church Wardn outlining this, which I can pass on the D O-N at the end of the week.
Thanks be to God for His presence this evening and His re-assuring guidance that we are following a clear path now with this project.. For the will and inspiration to continue. For the time and resources that each of us brings to the project. For the PCC and the Diocese of Winchester for their support and encouragement in this dauntng task.
Amen