Redevelopment projects

Construction Completed at the Golden Rule; Rehabilitation of the Golden Rule #3.

Posted on January 21, 2021 by jolynnpowers

Cleaning up the last bits of construction at The Golden Rule building 1907- Jan 19th 2020

It has been a very long 3 years of construction, and a year of clean up to get to this post. The rehabilitation of the Golden Rule Building is complete. We are ready to move our equipment and fixtures back into the building starting in Feb. It is almost unbelievable that I will be finished with my small portion of this project very soon.

The ten upper story apartments are fully rented and have given Belington, WV much needed quality housing. Soon I will help to bring a new economic driver to downtown with a cafe’, train ticket booth, train themed gift shop, and an artist market. Here are some of the views from the finished apartments before they were rented.

These are from both the two bedroom and single bedroom apartments at the Golden Rule before move in day.

The first floor took another month to fully finish, but the the style and feel is very much the same. The main difference between the first floor space and the upper floors is the open floor plan. Walls have been removed that surround the water powered elevator shaft. It is nice to be able to see the lift from all sides of the main floor. The elevator has been restored and is operable from the basement to the first floor. It will never carry any passengers or freight but can be used for a display to display how water hydraulics worked. We have also kept the steps from the first floor to the second floor. The stairs have been capped off so they are only for display at this time and are planned to be used as a historical collection space. The original offices have had the tin ceilings repaired and repainted. They are one of the only decorative features in the building. Since the building was used as a warehouse, grocery store and finally as an around store the need for decoration was secondary to functional items. The vault is now clean and ready for storage or display space. With the replacement of many of the broken window panes, paint and new lights the front of the building looks fresh and inviting again.

The photos below show the building in the state it was in before construction and while I was working on cleaning and storing the contents of the building of more than a year. We removed many of the antiques that were found in the building and have them ready to return as a display. The less unique items will be for sale to benefit the continued development of the property at The Golden Rule.

main floor of the Golden Rule mess t 1st Day

stacks of items on third floor of the Golden Rule

It will take at least three or four more months of work to get the retail stores ready to open. We have displays to buy, internet and phone systems to install and lots of vendors to work with. We have plans for about 30 individuals to sell items in The Golden Rule Marketplace. Working in collaboration with the Durbin & Greenbrier Railroad we hope to see the train running this spring and the stores open by June. Covid has delayed some of our work but with a hopeful heart and lots of work the Belington Revitalization Committee, the Barbour County Development Authority and Woodlands Development Group have plans to move this project forward and see that this building comes back to life. I hope to plan an open house event before I leave The Golden Rule for good and It should be a great celebration of what a small town and small development company can do.

I have written about the Golden Rule before and if you have any interest in my other posts you can look here. The Golden Rule Redevelopment #1, Ghost Visits of the Golden Rule, Clean up of the Golden Rule, Volunteers Impact the Golden Rule.

Categories: Abandoned structure, Barbour County, Belington, WV, Golden Rule, historic locations, Historic Preservation, Redevelopment projects, West Virginia History, Woodlands Development Group | Tags: Golden Rule, Historic Preservation, Historic West Virginia locations, Redevelopment, Woodlands Development Group | 8 Comments

The Golden Rule Under Construction #2

Posted on January 15, 2020 by jolynnpowers

The first line of my recent press release about the Golden Rule said,” The Future of the Golden Rule is in Sight”. That was amazing to write and is exciting to watch. So if you have been following me long you know about the wonderful building the company I work for is the process of redeveloping. If you are new here, let me take a moment to explain just a bit about the Golden Rule.

I work for a housing and community developer called, Woodlands Development Group, who in the spring of 2018 bought a historic 3 story brick furniture store warehouse-type building in the small town of Belington, WV. The Golden Rule building was built in 1903 and was owned by the Shinn family until the late 1980s and was sold to a man who used it for storage. Left to decay the community of Belington wanted to save the building and its history. Woodlands Development Group got involved and bought the building with grant funds from the second owner and arranged the financing of over 3 million dollars to redevelop the Golden Rule into a mixed-use building. The plan includes 10 apartments on the top two floors and a cafe and retail space on the first floor. I have been working on the building in several different capacities for two years and am now working on business development and marketing for the building’s future. She is my greatest work joy and I hope to be part of her future for many years to come. This is my home away from home!

Basement of the Golden Rule before image

JoLynn Powers working at the Golden Rule.

So my portion of the project finished just a few weeks ago. The building was finally empty after around 4, sixty-yard dumpsters and around 13,000 pounds of trash removal. We found storage for the truckloads of antiques that were not sold at several events so they can be used as decor for the first floor in the future. We (my AmeriCorps volunteers and I ) demolished hundreds of feet of shelves, flooring, ceiling tile and drywall. So construction contractors can turn the building around.

I finished my contract year with the knowledge that my work was not done but going to be different this year. So now I get to sit back and watch others build a brighter future for this building.

So far crews have cut huge wholes in the three floors for the elevator shaft and fire escape stairwell. They have excavated into the basement to remove dirt and rubble to get ready to pour new stairwell landing pads.

GEDSC DIGITAL CAMERA — Crews get the dirt out of the basement of the Golden Rule.

They have begun the framing of the walls inside each apartment and have had time to remove the breezeway that lead to the storage shed. These are before and after photos. You couldn’t see the breezeway from the back due to all the brush and trees.

The Americorps crews that helped me clean out the upper stories are back working on clearing out the basement and rafters of the third floor this spring. They are working to get the building ready for roofing contractors, and the electrical contractors.

It is only a few weeks into construction but changes are visible and teams of more people are working together to get things done. I am excited and so hopeful for the people who get to live and work in this building. I know Tom and I have our own plans to be part of the retail space in the near future, so I hope my involvement continues even after the Golden Rule reopens. This year I am happy to be helping in the development of the businesses, the build-out of the retail space and who knows what else to make sure this project gets off the ground running.

If you want to see more about the Golden Rule and the first steps in our process of redevelopment you can click here Golden Rule #1. There are many other posts about this and my AmeriCorps service that shares my love for this building and what I get to do for a living.

Categories: About me, AmeriCorps, Barbour County, Belington, WV, Golden Rule, historic locations, Historic Preservation, Redevelopment projects, rural life, West Virginia History, Woodlands Development Group | Tags: Belington, construction, Golden Rule, Historic, Historic Preservation, history, Redevelopment, West Virginia, Woodlands Development Group | 2 Comments

Boss Woman, not Boss Man

Posted on August 18, 2019 by jolynnpowers

JoLynn Powers on the first day of basement clean up and demo at the Golden Rule.

Being self-employed and being the Boss Woman on the job at the Golden Rule over the last 6 months is one of the best things I have done for myself. So I just wanted to share an experience with all of you that I find interesting and makes we want to continue the work I do. As the Redevelopment Coordinator for the Golden Rule Building and several smaller community beautification projects around the Barbour County Area, I am always working on projects with multiple people. My job entails working with and supervising volunteers and contractors to get a project completed. I make sure they have the supplies they need and work with local and state officials to keep them updated on our projects. I plan events to promote our projects and do community outreach to get the volunteers involved.

I often manage the challenges that arise as we do construction, demolition, redevelopment and finally instillations. I love working with people and supervising a crew and love to get my hands dirty.

58444758_10213905877897955_6380452945053351936_n

Team of AmeriCorps working with me at The Golden Rule summer of 2019. Left to right. Sarah, Kelsey, Me and William.

So the day when I had a crew working in the building doing demolition of 2500 square feet of hand made pine shelving I was surprised at my reaction of a just a few words said by a total stranger. As I was heading upstairs to work on tossing hundreds of boards into a dumpster I was approached by a man from the community on the first floor. He had let himself into the building and spoke to me unexpectedly. He said “Hey,…. where is the Boss Man?” I turned and asked him if I could help him with something and what did he need. Again he asked if he could talk to the”Boss Man.’ Being a nice person I never said, “Hey Asshole I’m the boss and that is why I am talking with you.” I just continued to ask questions and answer them for him. Finally, he said he was looking for work and wanted to know if we were hiring and who should he talk to. To this, I said, “No one is hiring laborers at this time, but if you are a contractor like I am, then the main office may be able to help you. They are looking for bids on HVAC, electrical, roofing and plumbing.” The look on his face was of total confusion. Frustrated he asked me who my boss was and where was he. I gave him the name of both of my supervisors and told him to call the office. Then it finally sank in, that I was the crew supervisor and not a man. I think that was almost too much for him.

These volunteers and AmeriCorps spent a day doing nothing but moving furniture and displays for me at the Golden Rule.

From the deepest part of my belly, I wanted to be an ass and say ” I am the Boss Woman on this job and how well do you work for women?” But in reality, letting him figure it out on his own and speaking to him in terms that would only be handled by the boss I had confused him to the point of frustration. Then when he realized that we had no need for laborers just licensed contractors he was disappointed and equally angry. I spent the rest of my day… irritated. Let’s just say being called the boss is one thing, but to be referred to as a man is never going to go down easy!

I have spent the last week after this situation thinking. I work with some of the most wonderful men in the world and I would not trade any of them for others. My Project Manager and Director understand my love for redevelopment and home improvement and are happy to have me and treat me with the same respect that any person deserves. I have a family who supports me in my passion to build, remodel, and redesign so I rarely ever have a conversation that is not met with equal understanding and passion. But I have to figure out a way to be tactful about explaining my roll at the Golden Rule when a man is confused about the work I do.

After using a grout bag I sweep up the lose grout before washing the tiles

My job for several days was doing grout on our family room floor. Grout bags are a wonderful product as long as you don’t mix too much water into the grout.

So this woman is her own boss and the boss of others and often the main contact for a redevelopment construction site. I have become the thing that I always wanted to be and doing work that I love. I have a team of people I work with who let me enjoy my work and are happy that I want to be involved in community development. So I will just have to get used to surprising people and learn how to say,” Boss Woman, Thank you!”