The former Cumberland Church sits on its new foundation on Wednesday afternoon.
Time to check in on the Cumberland Project, the private effort to turn the former church into a community center for Albany, especially the east Willamette neighborhood.
As you remember, the now 130-year-old building was moved in October 2021 from its original site at Main Street and Santiam to the corner of Santiam and Pine, about a quarter mile.
Since then it had sat suspended over its new concrete foundation. This week Emmert International, the building’s mover, was setting it down on the foundation, a job expected to be finished Thursday (Jan. 20).
When I asked him, Joel Orton, the vice president of Cumberland Community Events Center, outlined the jobs coming up next:
Redwood Construction will complete carpentry related to structural framing. Double Eagle Construction will fill pockets in the foundation walls now that steel supports have been removed. Gerding Builders will install foundation waterproofing and a perimeter drain. E.D. Hughes Excavation will backfill the excavation and a ramp across the property of the neighboring Habitat for Humanity Restore. And Rite Way Electric will extend power to the building.
Orton says the nonprofit then will focus on the preservation and stabilization of the exterior to keep it from deteriorating further. That includes replacing the roof, repairing the bell tower and putting it back on, repairing and painting the siding, and restoring the windows.
“Timing will be dependent on fundraising, which is our current focus,” Orton said in an email. “We are working with Gerding Builders to develop a detailed scope and cost estimate for this phase of work.”
There have been dozens of stories on this site on the long haul to save this little old church with distinctive architecture. You can read them by putting “Cumberland” in the search field. Or, and this will be easier, you can check out the group’s website, and find out how you can help. (hh)
And a closer look through the fence at Santiam and Pine.
Hey readers of H.H. blog…DONATE now. Betty & I just did ($100). Go on, you can afford it. If every reader of this blog did the same…WOW…
Thanks for the update. It’s easy to drive by and miss the progress.
And James Engel is right: we’d see a big increase in restoration progress if your readers, and the community in general, join together and donate to the project(s). So thanks again for the mention, too!