May 7, 2019
Board members & staff have been painting all of the new walls, as well as the original existing walls (which had only been primed). The result is that we have a lot of new color! Shown here are Board members George Thomson, Lou Krefski, & Fra DeVine, who have each taken some time to throw some paint on walls. There is still a bit more painting to do, but the place is really coming along. We hope to be able to raise the money for flooring & doors, so that we can, well...have floors and doors. To complete that work, we need to raise $10,000. Anyone who is so inclined can make a tax deductible contribution here.
Lou Krefski in the new studio control room
Fra DeVine (Left) & Lou Krefski in the new conference / classroom;
George Thomson after painting the hallway
April 25, 2019
The walls are up, interior windows are in, and we have received our electrical inspection. We now have a studio control room, master control room, equipment & training room, and conference / classroom. It's looking great - we have come a long, long way - one step at a time. And this newest step is a big one!
The fire safety inspection is scheduled for this coming Monday (the 29th). Working with Wright Construction (the general contractor on the project) has been great. Now that they are wrapping up with everything, we have begun painting all of the new walls, which we decided to do ourselves to save a little bit of money. Thanks to Board member George Thomson for spending 2 afternoons in a row painting the hallway. After 5 weeks of operating under limited evening & weekend hours, our facility will back to its regular hours of operation starting Tuesday the 30th. Little by little, we will be getting all of the equipment and furniture set back up. It will take a few weeks, but we are excited about putting it all to use. This really is a major improvement, and will pave the way for all sorts of new opportunities.
March 8, 2019
We have hired Wright Construction of Mount Holly as the general contractor for our Phase 3 renovations. We are excited to get going with this long-awaited project. Once completed, we will have the following new spaces (See the marked-up floor plan below, showing spaces that have been completed):
1. A studio control & production training room
2. Conference / Classroom (the "Digital Learning Lab")
3. Equipment & Training Room
4. Master / Broadcast Control Room
The work is being funded through a "Building Communities" grant from the State of Vermont, as well as grants from Okemo Community Challenge, The Cricket Foundation, & the Marro Trust.
Work will begin during the week of March 18th and will last for approximately 4 weeks. During this time (from approximately March 18 - April 12), our operating hours and access will be limited. Since we will be moving everything out of the areas where the work will be taking place, we will need to use the studio for storage. This means that we will be unable to use the studio for recording shows during this time. We will, however, be able to continue to lend out our portable cameras & other equipment. Appointments will be necessary, as we will have limited and different-from-normal hours. We will be open most weekdays from 4 -8 pm and on Saturdays from 10am-3pm during this period. Exact schedules will be posted here & on our homepage!
Floor Plan, showing Phase 3 renovations in Green, and the spaces that have already been completed in Red. (This is also available as a PDF download at the bottom of this page)
February 26, 2019
As we prepare to clean out and make space for Phase 3 renovations (details below), we are using this as an opportunity to take inventory of everything. As we do this, we will be getting rid of some items (for free), and selling some others. Among the free items are office partitions. If you have not been in to see them for yourself, we have 30 of them in total, with corner pieces & some hardware to help attach them. Best guess is that they weigh approx. 1000 lbs. total. They are in good condition, and range in heights from 62" to 83" - they also come in a variety of widths. They can be used in many different configurations. They have served us well over the last few years, but soon we'll have actual walls! They are available for pick-up anytime, and they need to be gone before March 22nd. Send an email to Patrick if you are interested.
February 2019
At long last, we are gearing up to do "Phase 3" renovations in our facility! This whole project began in 2010, when the Town of Ludlow took over ownership of the former National Guard Armory property, which included the "tank barn". We, along with the local food shelf & thrift store, Black River Good Neighbors, were offered the space on a long-term (20-year) lease. We were left to renovate the space to our needs - this was both a great opportunity and also a great challenge. On the one hand, we were handed over a blank slate, one with a large open space and high ceilings, ideal for creating a multi-media facility. On the other hand, we needed to raise the money to make it happen. Over the years, we have done this slowly (but steadily). Phase 1 finished in 2013, when we moved into the new space. Phase 2 finished in 2015 with the construction of, and subsequent improvements to, the studio, which is the centerpiece to the whole facility. Thanks to support from Okemo Community Challenge, the Marro Trust, and a $25,000 "Building Communities" grant from the State of Vermont, as well as individual donations, we are ready to start on Phase 3 renovations, which is scheduled to start by mid-March. Phase 3 will include the build-out of the "Digital Learning Lab" (a conference / classroom), the studio production control room, equipment & training room, and a broadcast master control room. All of this should be completed by late April. During the approximate 6 week construciton period, our studio and office hours will be reduced to nights & some weekends. Our operations will be somewhat limited, but it will all be worth it! We look forward to all of the new opportunities these new spaces will provide.
