July visit

I just got back from a brief five-day visit. In addition to seeing the 1784 transfer agreement:
- We gave two tours that were a lot of fun. On my next trip in September, I'm going to contact some of the local historic societies and see if they are interested. After September, they'll be closing up the walls, so it will be the last opportunity to see the "guts" of the building.
- We met with PP&L and they agreed (for $1,100) to give us a transformer on the ground rather than put a pole outside the mansion.
- We spent three hours with the general contractor, who is concerned that Dawn is doing so much work, she is taking away his profit margin. :-) He showed us pictures of his house before he restored it and we realized (again) how lucky we are that the mansion is in such good condition.
- We met with a former building inspector, who agreed that sprinklers in the mansion were ridiculous, and he's going to give us some suggestions for our appeal. We should have a date for the appeal within two weeks.
- Brian and Bob put stone in the basement of the Paymaster's Office, getting ready to pour cement. There's a strange pit down there in front of the chimney, about five feet square, filled with bricks, and topped with a thin layer of mortar. We have no idea what it was for or why it is there. (And no, it's not a grave.) But, as always, we're trying to be sensitive and not destroy anything, so Brian is trying to figure out how to pour the cement around around this.
- With the rough framing of the bathrooms complete, we laid out our fixtures and realized that nothing was going to work! We're regrouping and I'll post new plans when they're ready.

We also reviewed the schedule with the general contractor, and things are about to get very interesting:
- Mike continues framing the mansion for the next 4-6 weeks
- The arborist comes in mid-July
- The roofers start by the end of July.
- Adam Moyer (who is doing plumbing, heating, and cooling) runs pipes and ductwork starting mid-July
- Joel Miller (electrician) runs his cables after Adam, starting mid-August
- While the subcontractors are in the mansion, Mike starts working on the cottages
- PP&L installs their new equipment in August
- The mason re-points the walls in September
- The septic field is built in September
- Mike comes back to the mansion in mid-September to do finish carpentry
- Jerry starts plastering by end of September. The plan is to go room-by-room, Mike first with carpenty, then Jerry with plaster, then Dawn with paint. This will go through next March.
- The driveway is resurfaced next March
- We get our occupancy permit, I move to PA, and we open the B&B. Woo-hoo!

Plans for the Paymaster's Office (click to enlarge)