The long-awaited renovations to 66 Winthrop Street, home of University Lutheran Church and the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter, took place during eight eventful months in 1999. Here's a look back at our weekly progress. More about the building renovations.

Thanks to Jane Marston and Nancy Beckwith for providing information for this page. (Photo at right: parish administrator Jane Marston, Church Council president Stephanie Cucurullo, architect Rob Olson, and Building Design Committee chair Nancy Beckwith review tile samples. Photo by Elizabeth Bettenhausen.)

April 1999

Week of April 19

Two dumpster loads worth of junk carted away; movers picked up furnishings and took them to storage; barrier to protect trees erected; the organ was wrapped; the abatement of hazardous materials in basement was begun.

Week of April 26

Abatement of hazardous materials throughout the building completed; demolition begun on all three floors; repair of the masonry begun.

May 1999

Week of May 3

Demolition continued on all three floors; glass blocks were removed and salvaged from the circular staircase and from the windows on the first and second floors. Also, Harvard removed the ailanthus tree from the back yard (since it was on Harvard property); thanks to Bob Flannery for suggesting this.

Week of May 10

Barriers were set in place; sawcuts in the basement floor were made; and exterior excavation was begun.

Week of May 17

Excavation for the new wheelchair-accessible entrance continued, most of the trench work in the basement was completed, and roofing work was begun.

Week of May 24

Much of the rough plumbing work in the basement was completed; shoring and excavation work for the new wheelchair-accessible entrance continued.

Week of May 31

Fences were erected around the perimeter of the site; metal wall stud framing was installed on the first and second floors.

June 1999

Week of June 7

Demolition of the narthex begun; metal wall stud framing on the first floor continued.

Week of June 14

Most of the rough electrical work on the second floor was completed. Masonry and flashing work on the lower roofs was begun.

Week of June 21

The basement opening for the new entrance to the shelter was opened up; metal stud framing in the basement began; and preparatory work for the sprinkler and sound systems in the Sanctuary was started.

Week of June 28

The shoring for the new opening in the narthex was completed, and the basement slab was poured.

July 1999

Week of July 5

The masonry work on the new opening in the narthex was completed, and the masonry walls in the basement were begun.

Weeks of July 12, July 19, and July 26

New windows were installed; concrete footings for the sacristy addition were poured; piping for the new sprinkler system was installed; ductwork was fabricated; and masonry walls in the basement were built.

August 1999

Week of August 2

Drywall was installed on the first and second floors; installation of new windows was completed; and formwork was built for the interior ramp in the basement.

Week of August 9

Exterior masonry above the side aisle roofs was repaired; installation of sprinklers and ventilation ductwork continued; and formwork for the concrete footings for the exterior ramp was built.

Week of August 16

This week's work included formwork for the ramp, painting exterior trim, and millwork in the classrooms.

Week of August 23

Masonry work on the sacristy addition, fire protection work in the Sanctuary, and priming in preparation for painting in the offices and classrooms were all begun.

Week of August 30

Copper pans for the planters outside the Alumni/ae Room windows were built; new floors were laid in the offices and classrooms; millwork was installed on the first and second floors. On September 5, we celebrated our last service in our temporary summer quarters at Harvard University's Winthrop House.

September 1999

Week of September 6

Offices and classrooms were painted, a sprinkler system was installed in the Alumni/ae Room, the wood floor in the narthex was laid, the speakers for the sound system were installed in the sanctuary; sheetrock was installed in the high ceiling over the chancel; the office spaces were carpeted; concrete was poured for retaining walls for the lower-level wheelchair ramp; and many other tasks were accomplished so that we could return to worshipping in the building on September 12!

Week of September 13

The sprinkler pipes and soffits (undersides of beams) in the nave were painted, tile was installed on the wavy wall at the back of the narthex, and the site was secured in anticipation of Tropical Storm Floyd.

Week of September 20

Shelves were installed in the offices; most of the furnishings for the first and second floors were brought in; and the shower pans and mud floor in the Shelter bathrooms were installed.

Week of September 27

Sheetrock was installed throughout the basement; piping was installed in the boiler room; and new retaining walls for the ramp were backfilled.

October 1999

Week of October 4

The video/intercom system for the front door was put in; the tiling of the shelter bathrooms was completed; screens for the windows were installed; the epoxy floor in the basement was put in; and the basement ceiling was taped and primed.

Week of October 11

Concrete was poured for the upper run of the ramp; the epoxy floor in the basement was completed; the tiling in the second floor classrooms was redone, the thermostats for the heating system were connected, and the mosaic cross in the narthex was installed.

Week of October 18

More concrete was poured for the ramp and stairs out front; plastering and millwork took place in the narthex; the acoustical tile ceilings in the Fireside Room and Student Center were installed; and drainage work behind the building was done.

Week of October 25

Installed: flooring in the Fireside Room and student office space; plumbing fixtures in the bathrooms; and bicycle racks!

November 1999

Week of November 1

Our furniture and other possessions were returned from storage; the organ was unwrapped; and a festive ribbon-cutting was held for the new Shelter space.

Week of November 8

We dedicated the new Shelter space in preparation for the opening of the seventeenth season on November 15. Interior and exterior work on the sacristy addition/Shelter entrance, and landscaping, will continue for the next several weeks, but this will be the last regular update. Thank you for following our story!