Saturday's Progress a Positive Outcome

Core Drilling started last night.  The plumbers also worked today while core drilling continued in the kitchen area.  Outside Zona Rosa is preparing for tonights Christmas Lighting Festivities.  With the core drilling started, we will be ready for framers next week. 

Kevin Poston, Superintendent, Night Shift

Kevin arrived yesterday & met with Woody briefly to discuss the schedule for this project.  He returned again today in the afternoon for a more in depth meeting with Woody.  The night shift plumbing crew continued to layout and pre-drill for core drilling to start with the day shift later today.

Electricians Removing Old Wires

Demo work continues on kitchen floor & old comedy club.  Plumbing crew continues laying out for core drilling.

Electrical crew is still removing old lines in mezzanine and ceiling areas. 

Steel delivery should come next week.

Ready and Set for Night Shift

Superintendent that will supervise the night shift arrived today.  Our night schedule has already been approved.  Now we will work a day shift to continue with interior work and a night shift to handle the plumbing that has to be done below in the college area.  Demo crew continued in the kitchen and in the old comedy club area.  Meanwhile, the electricians are continuing the electrical demo in the mezzanine area. 

Electricians, Plumbers & Demo Crews

Day Crew:  Demo crew tackled the kitchen floor and East hall & vestibule.  The electricians worked in the west end mezzanine. 

Night crew:  two plumbers came in to work on layout for the night work to be done through the rest of the week.

Tuesday: Meetings, Inspections, Demo

In Platte City last night it was snowing on my way back from Kansas City job site.  However, it was about 2am before snow started out at the RV Park.  The photo is a view of snow on the ground this morning at the park.  It has since started raining.  Hoping for good road conditions. 

Today Woody attended the regular meeting with the mall & college management.  Michael Sawyers, Project Manager, & Peter from our Architecture Dept flew in for the SMG meeting.  This meeting is usually on Wednesday.  It was moved up one day for this week.   This also meant Michael did his site inspection to be sure we are progressing on schedule. 

As of today, Woody did submit and was approved for the night work to start Wednesday night.  We are now waiting for the superintendent that will come in to help out with the extra workload.

Monday: Rain Continues

It's been raining off and on all day.  The tempertures have continued to drop.  Although we didn't have snow all day, the forecast is calling for the possibility.  Then driving home at the end of the day, it started snowing. 

Demo crew focused on completing demo work in the vestibule and the old comedy club.  The electricians returned to disconnect all old electrical boxes.

Have been released to do core driling in electrical room. 

Continued working on schedule for night work starting later this week.

Saturday: DEMO Work Continues

Today the demo co stepped up and sent out four more men to continue with the kitchen demo.  They are putting forth a great effort to stay on schedule.  They will return Monday and move on to "IMPROV" area. 

It's been an excellent week.  Progress is very visible.

It's A Mess....But Not For Long

The demo crew continues the destruction of the old.  They are focused on the kitchen and lobby area.  With the college below our work site, we have to take care not to be too loud.  Construction work and quiet don't go hand in hand.  However, great efforts are being taken to schedule work in a manner that the noise level will not be too loud for classes in session.  Currently, Woody is working on setting up plumbing work to be done at night while the college is out for Thanksgiving holiday.  This will require a 24 hour job site to be supervised.  M Sawyers our Project Manager will be sending another superintendent to help out for those days.

Plumber Visited Job Site

Demo crew continued in the kitchen and cafe areas.  They are removing cafe back wall.  Electricians are continue to disconnect lines.  Plumber visited the site.  He looked over the area and the scope of work was laid out for him. 

First Day for Electricians

Demo crews working in the kitchen and cafe area.  Electrical crew started working on disconnections today.  Plumber should be on site tomorrow.  Attended weekly meeting with Zona Rosa, SMG, and Parkway. 

Demo Work Continues

Demo crew working in auditorium #5 and starting in cafe area.  Had first weekly meeting with mall & college today.  Made contact with the fire protection company. 

Let the Transformation Begin

Demo crew started today.  The crew started to clear out auditorium #4 and do all demo work required in that room first.  This will be used for a staging area once all demo is complete. 

Trip to Downtown Kansas City, MO

Today, we went to pick up the permits so that we can start transforming the building into the NEW Studio Movie Grill in the Zona Rosa outdoor mall.  We enjoyed our drive.  I can definitely say we aren't in the south anymore.  The leaves look so brilliant with their leaves of many colors.  The rolling hills are beautiful.  We are enjoying what we see so far.  We pulled up to City Hall with the help of Garmin.  However, parking was about three city blocks away.  So we walked back to City Hall. We couldn't both enter as Woody had a work knife with him.  So I had to wait outside on the steps with the knife.  After a brief wait, Woody returned without the permits.  He was informed the construction permitting office had moved down the block and across the street.  So we walked on another block and crossed the street to the new location.  We were able to pick up the permits.  Meanwhile, I was able to get some pictures of Municipal offices. We also saw the Federal Homeland Security building.  So we are official now.  Work can begin immediately.

Equipment Removed from Building

Master Superintendent Woody Gibson is ready to start this project. Contracts must be finalized and permits picked up.  The equipment is being removed from the building.  Some clean up will follow before Parkway Construction takes over the building.  By Spring 2010, Kansas City, MO will have a new STUDIO MOVIE GRILL in Zona Rosa.

Basswood RV Resort: Home Sweet Home

Being from the south, we've covered a lot of ground from North Carolina to Southern California, and all states in between.  But moving North is a truly new experience for me.  Woody has done some work in Maine in winter, New York, & DC.  So Kansas City, MO is a whole new adventure.  We managed to find an RV Park open through the winter months.  So this will be home for us this holiday season as we celebrate the holidays and wedding anniversary.  Our new project is in Kansas City, MO at Zona Rosa.  We are transforming the Majestic Theatre (home to the IMPROV Comedy Club) into the NEW Studio Movie Grill.  This will be a new challenge.  We are very excited to get started.

Halloween No Tricks Just Treats

Enjoying a little down time between projects.

Notice the strawberry cheesecake.

It's our fright night treat.

Pulling out of Lewisville, TX

Leaving Lewisville, TX today.  Going to stay the weekend in Oklahoma.  Come Monday we can remain in OK, return back here, or move on to our next project.  It all depends on contracts, agreements, and weather.

Front Steps Poured at BRIO Tuscan Grille

Welcome, JIM DOYLE

The new superintendent for this project has arrived.  We look forward to a smooth transition from one superintendent to the other. 

Progress has been on schedule.  The project is expecting to proceed seamlessly. 

Tomorrow our Director of Construction, Ted Young, will be on site to overlook the transition & make himself available to both superintendents and any subcontractors that may have questions. 

Brio Tuscan Grille, Houston, TX

Footers at Front Entrance

• Concrete crew continued removing concrete at Bar Patio #1 & setup footers at main entrance
• Plumbers working on under slab in restrooms
• Schedule confirmed to start retention wall in the morning.
• Passed footing inspection & poured footers

Pictures of Exterior of Brio Tuscan Grill

• Jim Doyle arrival date moved up to the 21st of October
• Scheduled footing inspection for tomorrow afternoon at the outside front door
• Concrete crew is now removing concrete at Bar Patio #1
• Plumbers digging out restrooms

Plumbers Digging Out Lines

• Concrete crew cleaned out the rest of the concrete debris.
• Plumbers digging out restroom lines
• Plumbers digging out beer lines

Beer Lines & Restroom Lines

• Concrete crews continue to remove concrete
• Plumbers digging out for r/r lines & beer lines
• Received portolet
• Received roll off

First Week at Brio Complete

• Concrete crew saw cutting at bar area to include the area for the electrical conduit
• Plumbers running soda line from bar to the back of building
• Went on upper floors found NO access to grease duct shaft
• Received plumbing & framing materials
• Received POs for portolet & roll off
• Rained off and on through out the day

Sawcutting at Brio in Houston

From Brio Pix

You will need to turn down the sound as the equipment noise is very loud.  The concrete sawcutting work is progressing.  This includes the removal of the concrete debris.  We are running on schedule.  It is a very hot and humid day today.  The electricians are working on getting us some temporary power.  The plumber stopped by to check out the site.  Plumbing crew will start in the morning.  Brio Project Manager visited the job site today.  He was checking to see if we were able to start and inspected progress made so far.

Brio Tuscan Grill Job Site

From Brio Pix

This is where we'll be working over the next few weeks.  Thought the video would give a good overall view of what it looks like now.  We'll video off and on while hear to mark our progress.

View of Houston, TX from Westin Oaks Hotel

Yesterday, we went into the middle of Houston.  This photo was taken by Woody from the 9th floor of the Westin Oaks Hotel at the Galleria.  This is the view we had across the way.  The traffic down below in front of the Galleria was nonstop bumper to bumper.  When we left around midnight the traffic had not died down at all.  As usual the Texas skies were beautiful.  As much as we travel across the USA, neither of Woody or myself have ever been to Houston. Aside from the humidity, we've enjoyed our visit so far.

City of Houston Code Offices

We arrived in Houston late yesterday evening.  We decided to wait on unpacking at the RV Park today so that we could go to the Houston Code Offices.
Thank goodness for our GARMIN.  It made it a breeze finding the offices where we were to pick up the plans and permits.  It was an extremely busy place.  As you would expect we were sent from one office to the next, until finally we were in the plan library.  We were able to get the plans for the Brio Tuscan Grill approved by the City of Houston.  After waiting and talking with a couple of different people, we were informed we can pick up the permit tomorrow. 

Let's Go Racing....Nationwide Races Tonight

Woody is still not liking the news that Petty Motor Sports is going to FORD in 2010. But he'll enjoy watching the Dodges race in the Nationwide & Sprint Cup Series tonight & tomorrow. He will need to decide to cheer for FORD or follow Kurt Busch & Sam Hornish a lot closer. He's a huge Kasey Khane fan and drives a Dodge. It'll be interesting to see what he decides

Woody's Video of Cliff's Check Cashing

Woody has been enjoying capturing video of many of his projects. Recently, we made a decision to begin sharing those videos here and at youtube. So I call Woody and ask him to shoot a video of the project & post it from his phone on youtube. He calls me a while later & says well, I tried to but the file was too big to send. I then said, "Woody you don't need to send over a movie. Perhaps you can shorten it to a trailer. " The trailer to this video is on youtube. For our blog followers, I am posting the full feature here.

Pictures Are Good, Video Is Better

Woody captured this footage, last night & early this morning. It's a tour of the BLACK FINN in Arlington, TX. Looks like tonight MAY be the final 24 hour session.

Day Six, Friday

Richard & Woody are working through the weekend continuing the split shift of the 24/7 in order to meet their deadline. The progress over the past days has been remarkable. The quality of the work is also great. Richard was able to find another crew of trim carpenters to come in and continue when the first crew finished the first shift. This allows them to have trim carpenters around the clock. During the day the millwork company delivered more wood trim. All MEP crews worked today.

Day Five, Thursday

The morning started with the glass subcontractor needing confirmation of window sizes. Plumbing & Electrical inspections are called in for Wednesday. So project new end date is listed as the 27th now. Millwork arrived in the afternoon as did the roll off for all debris. Plumbers installed all water lines at bar & turned water back on. They also did the top out plumbing work. Concrete was poured & finished in the bar. Electricians worked on installing outlets and fans. Framers finshed frame work on bar drop down. Trim carpenters did trim work at glass & booth walls. Meanwhile the mechanics worked on A/C drops. BUSY BUSY BUSY.....That's Progress.

Day Four

Framed ceiling over bar, applied sheetrock at bar & glass wall. Electricians added electrical boxes & lights in bar ceiling. Painters continued stain work & did first coat of mud at soffit. Plumbers came in to repair a water line at the bar. Trim work was continued by trim carpenters at glass wall and bar. Also, the tile crew set bar tile & put down floor leveler. Plumbing & Electrical inspections passed today. FRP work behind bar is complete. As for Richard & Woody, they are hanging on for the ride. It's going at a fast pace and it's hold on or get left behind. Those two aren't getting left behind.

Day Three

Richard Grigsby & Woody Gibson are really into the swing of it at the Black Finn in Arlington. They continue to split the 24/7 shift between the two of them. To meet their goals, both of these Supers know they will be working long hours, catching 4 or 5 hours sleep in between and get back to it. The quality of the work in excellent as is the progress. Trim Carpenters working on "glass" wall, bar, & end walls @ platform. Meanwhile, painters tape & bed, plus do some stain work.

Birthday Lady

Happy Birthday to Kellie at Parkway Construction. She turned a year older today! Kellie works at the office as part of the support staff. She is just fabulous. Kellie, thank you for all you do for us.

Project Excellence Awarded

CONGRATULATIONS to Woody Gibson & Wyatt Moore for earning the ProjectExcellence Award for the McDonald's in Santa Fe, New Mexico. We've just been notified by the office. This is excellent recognition of the effort we put forth this past spring in New Mexico. (The quality of this video is very shaky, but it gives a good view of the finished product. For a better view look in the right column for the slideshow of this project.)

Bill & Lena Wed ... Congratulations

Presenting: Mr & Mrs Perry Mason...NO JOKE

CONGRATULATIONS!

Perry & Kellie made it to their wedding (chapel?) location this past weekend to tie the knot. Talk about your good ole traditional gunshot wedding. Were pleased our Kellie was able to lasso him in for the big kill.

Today we got a couple of pictures commemorating the event. And, YES, his name is really PERRY MASON. Should we call her Della?

via Kellie & Lisa Productions

Kellie & Lisa both of Parkway seem to be behind any fun group activities. Woody & Terry were celebrating their birthday a few days early. Born on the same day in the same year. Both thinking 50 is the new "I'm all that" age. Can't thank everyone enough for all the fun, cake, and games. Woody & I went on some rollcoaster simulator. First while it was fun and we couldn't stop laughing. Then my purse got a way from me. We then had all sorts of things flying out at us. Woody took a big hit from a lip gloss. I got peppered with change. They stopped the ride so we could gather my things back in my purse. Then they gave us another bonus ride...That's when Woody went GREEN.

McDonald's Parking Lot

Today Woody reported to work at 4am. He is overlooking the parking lot work at a McDonald's in Irving on LBJ & McArthur. The crew and pump truck arrived early for the 73 yard pour. The work went as scheduled with no problems. The roof crew also worked today doing some maintenance on the roof of the store. The work to be done here will be about a 7 to 10 day project. Should know more next week.

Woody: Man of Many Talents

Today, I stayed behind while Woody went to check in at the office. Our dilemma is that although we found a place to stay last night. We must be out of this space by noon as it is already reserved for someone else. It's Memorial Day weekend, so finding a suitable location will be challenging. We made many calls to a variety of places and have placed ourselves on waiting lists. Woody finally received a call back from one of our prospects. They have a place for us and we can move over immediately. I quickly packed up and pull in the tip outs. Woody arrived shortly after and we pulled out from Destiny RV Park and headed to Sandy Lake RV Park in Carrollton, TX. We did a temporary setup since we are unsure how long we will be in this area. Tomorrow Woody will report at 4am to his new project. The PM for this job is Eric Rawlins. It's about a ten day job. But tonight, it's relaxation time and Woody created a fabulous dessert.

Pizza Party

We have a 2007 Keystone Challenger 38' fifth wheel RV trailer. It has one bedroom with closets. A full size restroom with full size shower, lavatory, and toilet. A kitchen with a stove, fridge, double sink, two islands for cooking. A living area with two recliners, flat screen tv, book shelves, cabinets, office desk & work area. And a dining room with dining table and four chairs. Woody and I comfortably live here while on the road traveling for the company. But while in Texas we have hosted a variety of gatherings for NASCAR weekends at Texas Motor Speedway. But in Littlefield, we managed to entertain my family and friends for a pizza party during our one day stay. It's a shame that we don't get to visit our family and friends more often. So in an attempt to see everyone at once, we called everyone to come out to see us at the Waylon Jennings RV Park in the Littlefield National Forest. At one point we had 23 people over. With a total of six large pizzas, two pans of lasagna, and 40 hot wings, we still had loads of left overs. We talked and laughed until late into the night. Finally we said our goodbyes. This morning we pulled away. Liz of course came out in the morning to say goodbye, again. It's hard leaving so soon. But we had a great time. Today is Mary Jane's Birthday...HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Littlefield McDonald's

Our Project Manager, Michael Sawyers, had Woody go take a look at pending work at the McDonald's Woody completed a couple of years ago. First we had a homemade meal at my parents with all my brothers and sisters and some of my nephews & neices. Woody went on to McDonald's after lunch, while I headed back to the RV to prepare to visit with my family later in the afternoon. The day was gone before we knew it and in the morning we were traveling to corporate office in Lewisville, TX. But today, we are enjoying the company of our loved ones. This is a photo of my sisters, Linda & Lori.

RVing Unique Style

So we pull into a gas station to fuel up. It's a chance to stretch, freshen our drinks, and get one last view of this beautifully ENCHANTING LAND called New Mexico. Then I glimpse a view of something that you don't see just anyday. An old school bus has been transformed into a live in home on wheels. Attached to it is a pull trailer. Traveling with this group is an old pickup truck modified and able to pull an older pull trailer. It's an interesting setup. I'm mostly curious about how far they are traveling, where their final destination is and of course the set up of their units. Well, we are headed into Littlefield, TX. We are going to soak up all the views we can on our way out of New Mexico.

Official Certificate of Occupancy for McDonald's

Today Woody met Mrs Zamora at McDonald's for a final walk through. She found all items complete and accept the building. Woody was able to officially present Mrs Zamora with the Certificate of Occupancy from Santa Fe County. This has been a great project. Afterwards we returned to the RV Park and hooked up so we could begin our journey back to Texas. This is a view of the clouds that we were outrunning through out our trip today. Our first stop is Littlefield, TX. We arrived rather late, but were able to set up and pick up take out.

Finishing Touches Completed @ McDonald's

This work was completed yesterday and late last night. We actually worked on it until the early hours of Saturday morning. But it was important to do the final touches on the building while the lobby was closed. We are now ready for Mr & Mrs Zamora to sign off on the completion of this project.

Wyatt Moore Makes Final Visit

Wyatt Moore, Project Manager, came in today to meet with owners, Mr & Mrs Zamora. They walked the premises with Woody inspecting the quality of the workmanship. The Zamora's were very pleased with the completion of the project. Wyatt noted a few items that needed more attention. All items on the list are things that Woody will be able to do himself. Sadly, our time in New Mexico is quickly coming to an end. We should be able to wrap things up here tomorrow.

Pre-punch List Completed

The owners are scheduled to do a walk through of the premises tomorrow. Meanwhile, we've gone over the entire project looking for anything that may have been overlooked or needed further work required for a quality completion. Painters came and did some touch up work, while Woody tackled other odds and ends. The customers continue to keep the employees busy. This is a very busy store & the customers continue to compliment the new changes.

Sneak Peak at New Dining Area @ McDonald's

Today the plumbers came out to lower a drain line that was positioned a little to high. The wallpaper work was completed. Met with the Plumbing Inspector again regarding the drain line and it's position. The line is in place as called for by inspector.

Wallpapering at McDonald's

Well, a good portion of the wallpapering was completed today. In addition the glass crew came and finished brake metal work in vestibule. Woody also got a crew to come out and touch up some exterior paint work & caulk ext windows at playplace. The restaurant continues to be open for business. The work we are finishing is done cautiously in areas with no customers.

McDonald's PLAYPLACE

What an excellent day. Wyatt Moore, Project Manager, arrived and was able to walk the job with Woody and discuss the remaining work to be completed. Later, Ben Simms, McDonald's Area Construction Manager, and Mr Jimmy Lopez, Regional Construction Manager, stopped by to inspect the job. They were very pleased with the final product. Jimmy has a way of quietly expcecting nothing less than the best from Woody. Woody is always up to the challenge. It's always great when we look back on a project and feel that we met or exceeded the customer's expectations. All COD work is complete. Wallpaper is still not delivered. Crew is on the ready as soon as it arrives.

FRP Work Completed

Above is a view of the dining area as you exit the restrooms. The wallpaper still has to be hung. However, the wallpaper has yet to arrive. As soon as it is delivered a crew is ready to come do that work. The carpenters were here today and finished all the additional FRP work and the corrections on FRP already installed. Mr John Ekes of DAVACO came by to inspect the CBB installation completion. The doors ordered did arrive today & will be installed tomorrow.

Any View in Santa Fe is a GREAT VIEW

This is a view from the booth we always sat in when we'd eat at the Plaza Cafe. The cafe is on the square in the middle of all the downtown activities. It's always very busy, and yet a very relaxing atmosphere. The food is wonderful. They serve a variety of items from New Mexico favorites to good ole' American greats. My personal favorite was the nachos. Woody on the other hand always tried a different menu item every visit. His favorite was definitely the rolls that came with the meal. While we wait for our meal we enjoy the latin music playing in the background and watch the many tourists going to and fro sightseeing and shopping.