Irene Stewart, Peter Young, Sherry Smith, Suzette Reiss, Mark Sisson, Beth Peterson, Peter Marren
Guests: Joe Spitaliere, Eugene Burger
Meeting called to order at 5:30.
Minutes were postponed until after meeting with Joe Spitaliere and Eugene Burger.
The Building Team met with Mr. Spitaliere first. Peter Marren, and the BT, asked Mr. Spitaliere several questions about how he felt he would fit in with the “conditions” of building our church. Mr. Spitaliere has been in business since 1962 and on the East End for more than 26 years. He would act as the representative of the church, writing specs for bids, collating bids and contractors, and approving disbursement of funds. Mr. Spitaliere has formulated a spread sheet system to keep track of contractors’ insurances, monies paid, monies owed, etc. (Note: Mr. Spitaliere did not leave a copy of his system with the BT.) He has worked on churches before: a renovation of an existing structure, St. Agnes Catholic Church in Greenport. He also stated he has a number of sub-contractors he uses and they are predominantly local. He noted that while he had no experience with historic preservation, he does have a good working relationship with the regulatory agencies of Southold Town. Mr. Spitaliere noted that the Blue House could pose problems during the construction period, but he felt it was not an insurmountable obstacle. He stated that building the 1st Universalist Church of Southold would be a “feather in his cap” and was aware of the importance of our project.
The BT and Mr. Marren thanked Mr. Spitaliere for his time and enthusiasm, and he was excused.
The BT and Mr. Marren, after a brief discussion of our impressions of Mr. Spitaliere, welcomed Eugene Burger. Peter Marren asked Mr. Burger the same questions he had posed to Mr. Spitaliere about his fit for our project. Mr. Burger has been building on the East End for 36 years. He addressed his reputation of being “pricey” by stating he and his company are “driven to get things finished.” His company has 25 staff members, including office personnel, framers, finishers, etc., as well as a “portable shop” and all the necessary accessories for this type of construction. (He related his personal “fondness” for painting, but noted he would be willing to work with anyone the BT recommends.) During Mr. Marren’s, and the BT’s, questioning, Mr. Burger seemed willing to lend his expertise to formulate more exact estimates for building materials, etc. His firm has worked with Stacy Paetzel in the past. He is part owner and main contractor for the Peconic Bay Yacht Club in Greenport. He noted his good working relationship with the regulatory agencies of Southold Town. He addressed the issue of the Blue House, but also felt it wouldn’t be insurmountable. Mr. Burger expressed his appreciation of the task of the Building Team and how important the Church in its new iteration would be.
The BT and Mr. Marren thanked Mr. Burger for his time and enthusiasm, and he was excused.
Minutes from the meeting of April 27 were accepted.
There followed a thorough discussion of the merits and concerns for both contractors. Sherry made a motion, seconded by Suzette, that the Building Team recommend the Board of Trustees enter into a contract with Eugene Burger of Burger Construction, Inc. Motion carried.
Peter Marren presented refined plans, incorporating ideas from previous BT discussions. He also stated he is about to meet “informally” with members of the Planning Commission. He excused himself from the remainder of the meeting.
The BT addressed the email from Ceil Louka, which stated that the BT should be providing weekly updates to the Board of Trustees per the Charge to the Building Team. The BT examined the Charge and found it to state that updates to the Board were to be made bi-monthly, and Irene stated that she sends updates via email to the Board regularly. She will answer Ceil and will determine the best course of action (printed notes handed out, notes contained as attachments to emails, etc.)
Mark noted he would be unable to attend a BT meeting May 11. It was decided that the BT would meet again May 18.
Meeting adjourned at 9:05