Work continues on a new foundation, new flooring, new doors, and new energy-efficient windows for our Arizona Avenue Lobby. This area serves as an entryway to Forbes Hall and to our classrooms upstairs.
The structural steel company is on site this week, installing their hold-downs. Once they are done, we will get an inspection from the City of Santa Monica. What’s a hold-down? In structural engineering, a hold-down or tie-down is the steel device or hardware installed at the end of a plywood shear wall; it secures wood stud walls from dislocation due to seismic shaking and wind.
After the footing inspection is complete, we will fix a broken pipe (probably an old irrigation pipe) that is in the footing and might be a cause of a leak.
During the months of this project, the Arizona Lobby area, including the bathrooms on the first and second floors, will be blocked and inaccessible. Therefore, the only bathrooms available on our campus are two in the Cottage and one in the Sanctuary Lobby. We are sorry for the temporary inconvenience caused by the construction and we appreciate everyone’s understanding. We can enter our campus from the front courtyard (the sidewalks on 18th Street and on Arizona Avenue) and from the alley gate next to the kitchen and the Forbes Hall glass doors.
In June, Abby Arnold gave us a look at the significant reasons for this project. Work began in July, and two stories show steps completed last month: early August and mid-August.
