Well, today is Aug. 5, 2011...that means it's been 3 months, 11 days, 12 hours, 32 minutes, and 14 seconds since I last updated my blog here...well, ok, I really don't know the hours and minutes - I just got on a roll there. It has been over 3 months though as my last update was back in April - wow...where has the time gone.
A lot has happened since April - the biggest change is that my build-out is well on the way to being completed. What a pain of a journey to get to where I am right now. Now, I will say in advance that not all the people I have worked with have been a pain...some of them, a lot of them, have been very good to work with - it's just the entire process that has been a pain. First, because my lease space is larger than 3,000/SF, the city (Provo City) requires architectual drawings - bummer. If I had only the 3,000/SF, my drawings would have been sufficient - instead, I had to pay big bucks (really) to get a full set of plans drawn up...so that involved a draftsman, architect, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, and plumbing engineer. Yeah - whenever you see those two words - 'architect' and 'engineer', the money I thought was mine is no longer mine. I'll have to give some additional stories about the 'plans' later...for now, I just want to give a quick and decent update.
So, plans were done and submitted - the city was very quick to approve and after more big bucks, I had the building permit inhand!! However, as the bids came in, everything came to be...well, not just 'over' budget but INSANELY over budget - for me anyway. It was really to the point if we couldn't get the bids down, the project would have died...and I would have been on the hook for a 7-year lease. Fortunately, after meetings and a re-design by me (since the entire design is my own), we got everything down to where it was acceptable - whew!
We finally pulled the trigger on the build-out on Jun. 27 with the framing of the interior walls and then the other subs came in 3 days later (electrical, plumbing, HVAC). Actually, the electrical subs didn't come in...another story there as we had to go with a different electrical sub.
Fast forward to today.......we completed (mostly) the painting mid-week this week, the suspended ceiling has been started, the fire sprinkler system is being adjusted, new front doors are going in according to my floor plan - I'll be starting the bathroom tile next week, lights will be going in next week and things are moving along.
In short, sorry for the passage of time without any updates. That time frame was...not stressful but just disappointing because I'm a hands-on type of guy and I wanted to get things going (to the point that I just wanted to do everything on my own). However, since this is a commercial building... In any case, I'm shooting for a Sept. 8 opening - pending equipment arrival. I know I need to start interviewing and hiring soon...along with many other things that I need to get done. These past few weeks since the actual start of the build-out have been busy ones for me - up at around 5/6:00 am, to bed around 12/1/2 am - nothing like a good hard day's work (well, as hard as one can work while on a computer for my current job).
I'll try to keep this blog more current though I do have a lot on my plate...doing the painting, installing tile, installing all the flooring, making my own cabinets and maybe my own tables...a lot to do to keep me busy. Pictures? - yes, I have them...I need to sort through them and post them - should be coming soon! Until then, I'm still alive and kicking and moving towards an open date!
