We Are On the Move

We are planning to vacate 175 St. Clair by September. Between now and then, for every movable item in the building, we must decide what we want to:

• KEEP (move to our interim home, or store until we have a permanent home) or
• DISPOSE OF (donate, sell or put in the garbage). This is a golden opportunity for us to declutter!

Once these decisions are made, professional movers will be hired to transfer everything to our temporary home or to storage facilities.

While staff will be involved for some items, most of the work will need to be carried out by volunteers (to whom we shall owe a great debt of gratitude once the work has been completed!).

We hope to start in February. Due to the pandemic, it is important that there not be too many people in the building at the same time. So, the “On The Move” co-ordinating team (Art Brewer, Judy Clarke, Jane Larimer) will schedule volunteers’ access to the building.

Depending on the room, weekdays after 3:30pm or weekends are best. Until June or perhaps later, renters will be using the Spirit Play and nursery rooms weekdays until 3:30pm. No one is currently using the building on the weekends.

Please contact one of the members of the “On The Move” co-ordinating team who will arrange to let you into the building.

No one should be alone in the building. If not accompanied by a helper, each volunteer must arrange with the “On The Move” co-ordinators for another person to be elsewhere in the building at the same time.

Current Covid protocols must be followed, including proper use of a mask at all times.

Volunteers must not attempt to move heavy items. A special team of volunteers or professional movers will handle these items.

Items will be either placed in one of the staging areas which will be established in Sunderland Hall or left in place and labelled to indicate what will ultimately be done with them.

We’ll try to assign volunteers to spaces where they are familiar with what will be needed or not. So, in many cases, individual volunteers will know what to:

• KEEP (move to our interim home, or store until we have a permanent home) or
• DISPOSE OF (donate, sell or put in the garbage). This is a golden opportunity for us to declutter!

If in doubt, ask one of the “On The Move” co-ordinators.

When deciding what to do with an item, volunteers are asked to consider such things as:

• significance to the congregation and our faith tradition
• likelihood of their use in our interim or permanent location
• practicality and cost of storage (IMPORTANT! We need to limit expensive storage space)
• monetary and/or aesthetic value
• suitability for donation
• potential resale value.

Small items should be boxed with their contents clearly labelled (labels will be provided) and placed in the appropriate staging area in Sunderland Hall.

Large and/or heavy items should be left in place and clearly labelled “RETAIN.” These items will be transferred by professional movers to our temporary home or to storage facilities.

These should be placed in the appropriate staging area in Sunderland Hall or left in place and clearly labelled “DONATE” or “SELL.”

Items suitable for garbage collection or recycling by the city may be placed in the bins located in the laneway on the west side of the building. The “On The Move” co-ordinators will arrange to move the bins to the sidewalk area for collection and return the bins to the laneway afterwards.

Yes. Cardboard boxes, moving tape, bubble wrap, labels, etc., will be provided. Items in cardboard boxes which will be placed in storage must eventually be transferred to plastic boxes. These must be rented from moving and storage companies, so we wish to keep their use to a minimum.