The following is part of a report submitted on behalf of our church to the NJ Historic Trust. We print it here so that our readers may receive first-hand information on the developments in our old cemetery. We have much reason to be grateful for the wonderful work that Christine and her students undertake.
Christine Miller Cruiess, a part-time lecturer at Rutgers, will be leading a field school in the Cultural Heritage and Preservation Studies Program (CHAPS). The goal of the field school is two-fold. First, the students will conduct a conditions assessment that will inform a Preservation Plan for the cemetery, following the New Jersey Historic Preservation Office’s Historic Structure Reports and Preservation Plans. The preservation plan for the site will be heavily informed by students’ work during the Spring 2010 term, the pre-requisite course for the field school. During the Spring 2010 term, the students completed archival research on the cemetery and those interred there, research into the materials in the cemetery, research into different conservation methods and techniques that conform to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards, and a survey form and glossary to document the current conditions of each individual grave marker in the cemetery. The preservation plan will build upon the students’ previous work and create a prioritized treatment plan for the treatment of the entire cemetery site.
The second goal of the course will be comprised on a pilot implementation program where students will gain hands-on experience completing conservation treatments. The students will be supervised by two conservators who have extensive experience in outdoor monument and cemetery conservation (resumes available upon request). In summary, the proposed conservation treatments will include:
- Cleaning grave markers with D/2 (available from Cathedral Stone), an architectural antimicrobial.
- Repairing breaks in sandstone and marble markers using a structural epoxy.
- Repointing cracks and joints in grave markers using a lime-based mortar for marble markers and using a Jahn Patching mortar (available from Cathedral Stone) for repairing sandstone markers.
- Injection grouting delaminations in sandstone using a grout with water, lime, silica micro-balloons, and a fine silica sand.
- Resetting markers with proper alignment.
All treatments will conform with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards.
Tagged as:
Cemetery,
cultural heritage,
grave markers,
Preservation
It is about 10 years now since Julius Fekete first set foot into our church. Soon afterwards, Julius became the personification of a great tradition that was last carried on by Ray Clark. This is the tradition of having a master craftsman in our midst, who knows the buildings and grounds better than most of us, and who is willing to spend countless hours with the sometimes tricky questions of maintenance and repair.
One of the first of Julius’ projects was the building of a large mail box by the entrance door on 9 Bayard Street. Until then, mail delivered through the slot used to land on the floor. Sometimes, we lost a piece, and sometimes two. The new mailbox changed all that.
Another project was the replacing of the wardrobe in Fellowship Hall. Without much ado, the frail old pieces ended in one of our many dumpsters, and Julius built us new ones. Later, you could see him lead a small team of volunteers rebuilding the walls of the pantry in the sexton’s house.
Then there was the plan for the new church library. Julius built the large windowsill, the conference table in the center, and the media center at the entrance to the room. He also built all the shelving in the room. Later, Julius built shelves and a wardrobe for the choir robes in the Robing Room.
Julius also organized much of our outside work when he coordinated the lawn mowing of our volunteers. And always, always, he has been seen with the wooden toolbox he stationed here at the church in order to fix this or that. Broken locks, chancel furniture, the frame for an air conditioning unit — you name it, Julius has done it all.
His efforts were crowned when he helped to get our preservation project underway. In order to expedite consistory discussions, he appeared at one of the meetings with a foam board filled with pictures that showed the extent to which our buildings had fallen into disrepair. As we all know, he came not a day too early.
Shortly thereafter, we found ourselves forced to replace the roof on the education building and to shore up its tower. Thanks to Julius, we had at least the structures in place to cope with these emergencies: Margaret Westfield as architect under contract, and a contractor and subcontractor to carry out the work without delay.
Now, Julius has passed on the baton — maybe not for all the particular projects, but for the chair personage of the Preservation Team. Caryn Aran is the new leader on board, and we welcome her with open arms.
When we finished the women’s bathroom, one could see Julius and Caryn work side by side — Elijah passing on his mantle to Elisha; you remember the story from 2 Kings 2.
We will recognize Julius’ service to the church and the passing of the baton to Caryn with a special coffee hour on Fathers’ Day, Jun 20th, after worship service. Please help us to make this a special day.
Tagged as:
Preservation
Tongue in cheek, I can say we are in the calm before the storm. I say this because the current action of our preservation project takes place behind the public scene. Let me explain what I mean.
This month, Westfield Architects collected pre-qualification forms from the potential contractors involved with Phase I of our project. Following this, Westfield Architects called for references and sent them for approval by the New Jersey Historic Trust (NJHT).
As soon as the NJHT approves the bidder’s list, the bidding documents will be distributed. The bids are due in the second half of March. If all goes according to plan, our Consistory will vote on particular contractors in April. At the same time, our Preservation Team will want to coordinate our choice of contractors with neighboring Christ Episcopal Church. Cooperating in this way, we hope to be economically more efficient. Phase I construction is scheduled to begin during the second half of May. This is when the public will notice progress.
Since our grants from NJHT and from the City of New Brunswick will be paid by reimbursement, there will not be much news prior to the beginning of the construction. The exception is, of course, our reimbursement for previous construction under the NJHT grant. This depends now on recording an easement on our buildings with Middlesex County. NJHT is currently drafting this document, but Consistory will have to approve it before we can bring it to the county office.
There is some development regarding the state grant covering the cost of remediation for our former underground oil tank. The grant has been set aside by the Department of Environmental Protection, but requires review by the NJ Economic Development Authority who will have the final decision.
Tagged as:
Preservation
I am pleased to inform you that we were awarded the Preservation Grant on Feb 25th in the full amount of $487,797. This is joyful news and will hopefully boost some of our other fund-raising efforts. All of this is very important as the State government has simultaneously announced the end of the Historic Preservation program in its current form. We caught the last train! [ more » ]
Tagged as:
History,
Preservation
