Project Booklet

Polish Home

Expansion & Remodeling

Polish Home for a New Century

The Polish Home has been the hub of the Polish community of Seattle and the Puget Sound area since 1919. The building itself was constructed in 1900. It was remodeled and renovated piece-meal several times, notably in late 1960s and over the last decade. Among other things, the bar and the lower hall have been remodeled and the floor and other elements upstairs have been renovated. In 2004, new noise reducing windows were installed at a cost of $21,000 and the Ladies Auxiliary remodeled the kitchen for another $21,000.

Despite all the positive changes, the overall state of the building is not satisfactory. The building started as a dance hall and in fact was one of the most popular dance halls in Seattle in the 1930s. Today, it has changed its character. It is home to multiple organizations important to the Polish community and a scene of many cultural events. However, it is no longer functional for new and upcoming needs. First of all, space is needed for another meeting room, for secure exhibitions, or for a small theater with Polish TV or film club meetings. Second, we need an elevator to improve access not only for the disabled and the elderly, but also to gain access to a vast storage space in the attic. Finally, the building also needs several technical improvements. It does not conform to modern building codes and has an old electrical network and sewer lines. The stage upstairs requires complete remodeling that should also include changes to the backstage areas, emergency exit and stairs. Lastly, parking is a perennial cause of complaints and needs to be improved.

It is firm belief of the Committee that improving the functionality of the building, and thus facilitating organization of events, is essential to attracting more people to the Polish Home. In so doing, it is our goal to develop the Polish Home into a vibrant hub for a new century.

In light of these issues, Polish Home Association (PHA) initiated an expansion and remodeling program that should bring the Polish Home into the 21^st century. Polish Home Foundation (PHF), being a public charity with the 501(c)(3) tax exempt status is leading the fundraising campaign to finance the extensions. This is the project that is described in this brochure.

Project overview

There are many improvements that the Polish Home requires. Actual improvements will be selected based on the available finances.

The Master Plan

The Master Plan has been discussed for some time in our community, and it has been approved by the PHA with the following phases:

Phase I

Extension of the front of the building towards the street for about

$350,000 includes the following:

	An entrance foyer with a new wide staircase, an elevator from the street level to the ground floor and upper floors,
	Second floor with library storage room as well a room serving as a library reading lounge, a secure exhibition hall, a meeting room, and small film theater,
	Third floor with additional space that would be left empty at this stage.

Phase I is what we want to concentrate on. Phase II & III of the Master Plan would be priced and implemented once the extension is built and financed appropriately.

Phase II

Consolidation and internal improvements include the following:

	Recovering space used by the current stairs as new storage rooms, finishing interior changes,
	Finishing an apartment on the third floor,
	Rebuilding the stage area upstairs as well as rebuilding the stage itself, replacing fire escape,
	A new air conditioning system. It would be mounted on the top of the extension but would service the whole building.

Phase II could cost from $50,000 to $300,000 depending on the number of elements implemented.

Phase III

Extending the parking lot from 28 to 50 stalls, constructing storm water retention tank as required by the code and improving sewer lines, for about $70,000.

The goal of the campaign is to construct an extension to the building with additional rooms for better functionality, with a working hydraulic elevator and new stairs. The additional rooms, hallway, and stairs would be finished to the extent required to obtain the occupancy permit for the building from the City.

The site plan above shows that the proposed extension is an addition to the current structure. This is a crucial aspect of the project because the old building is not up to the current building code. By constructing an addition, PHA avoids being forced to do very costly upgrades to the current structure.

West elevation according to one proposal

The extension would add about 955 sq. ft at the ground floor and 1,195 sq ft at the second floor. Currently both floors of the building have 4,630 sq ft for a total of 9,260 sq ft. The third floor would add about 1,270 sq ft. Once the extension is decided to be built, the cost of adding the third floor is quite low; thus substantial additional space can be gained inexpensively for future use. Overall, the extension would add about 3,420 sq ft to the current 9,260 sq ft.

The plans shown here are preliminary. While the basics are fixed (the addition with new rooms, elevator & stairs) other aspects might be changed. For example, some prefer that the elevation should be more in the style of the old one. Also, other changes might be required by the City. All changes are subject to our finances and the building code.

The entrance foyer is at the sidewalk (street) level with no steps. Inside, there are few steps down from the entrance foyer to the current ground level hallway. Disabled access would be easy as visitors can turn left and go on the same level to the elevator. The elevator could be accessed from two sides with passengers going from the street level down to the current first floor or up to the upper floors. On the right there would be a new, wider staircase with lower steps and an intermediate landing half way up to the second floor. The manager’s office would be moved and the Polish School would have its own school office in the old manager’s office.

The view on the next page shows the second floor of the addition with the new stairs, elevator exit, and the library room that would also serve as a meeting room and an exhibition room. This room could also be used as a small theater for a film club or for watching Polish TV through satellite. It would also be used by the Polish School.

The space provided by the old stairs would be converted to storage rooms for tables and chairs that are kept in the concert hall upstairs. This would solve the problem of the big trolleys for tables and chairs that clutter floor space during big events.

Below is a plan of the third floor with the elevator access. The space on this floor would be left empty for storage purposes during Phase I. The space can be converted into an apartment at a future time but this is not a part of the current pledge campaign.

Please note that constructing an apartment does not necessarily mean that the current manager building would get demolished. An application was filed with the City for an option to demolish the building and extending the parking lot but it would make more economical sense to rent the building.

Campaign plan

To build the $350,000 extension as covered by Phase I, the plan is to do the following:

	Run the core pledge campaign in May and June 2005 and then expand it in the fall of 2005. The goal is to collect most of the money within a 2 year collection period.
	Organize other fundraisers for the project as well as continue the pledge campaign as necessary over the next 2 years.
	Make an initial assessment of the projected finances based on pledges by the end of June 2005, and the final estimate in fall of 2005, and propose the appropriate scope of the construction.
	Receive community feedback on the proposed extension in the fall/winter of 2005.
	Commission the actual architectural and construction plans in fall/winter 2005. Work with the City on obtaining the appropriate use permits. Making of plans and going through the permission process is expected to take 12-18 months.
	Start the construction in the summer of 2007 to have the new library/exhibition room, elevator and stairs functional in the fall of 2007.

The campaign will be a wide grass-root campaign contacting over 1000 people connected to the Polish Home in one way or another, starting with the Polish Home Association members. As some people may not be able or willing to donate substantial amounts, we ask every family to donate about $500 - $1,000 to the campaign to collect enough funds for the construction. The plan also includes applying for grants that support providing disabled access to the building.

Recognizing donors

The Fundraising Committee will mount a special board (or boards) at the Polish Home to honor the donors. The list of donors will be presented in sections corresponding to donation value ranges with names listed alphabetically without specific values. The ranges will be as follows: 25,000 or more, 10,000 – 24,999, 5000 – 9999, 2000 – 4999, 1000-1999, and 500 – 999.

Naming opportunities

Naming opportunities are special ways of honoring the people who have contributed exceptional amounts. The opportunities for this campaign include the following,

- Concert Hall upstairs, $50,000

- Library & Exhibition Hall, $25,000

Proposals from donors will also be considered.

The campaign will make some other opportunities available later. The Committee also plans to make space available for special plaques or bricks once the construction plans are finalized.

Gift plans

Many donors would like to spread their contributions over time for personal reasons or due to matching gift plan limitations. If you like to give in smaller installments over a longer period of time, the table below can help with planning such contributions.

Spreading your gifts over 2 years

Gift plan	Pledge	First install.	Annually	Quarterly	Monthly	Daily sacrifice
Partner	25,000	2,500	11,250	2,812.5	937.5	30.82
Champion	10,000	1,000	4,500	1,125	375	12.32
Guardian	5,000	500	2,250	562.5	187.5	6.16
Patron	2,000	200	900	225	75	2.47
Builder	1,000	100	450	112.5	37.5	1.23
Provider	500	50	225	56.25	18.75	0.62
Supporter	300	30	135	33.75	11.25	0.37

Please note that other gift plans (shorter or longer than two years) are also possible.

When considering a pledge, please ask your employer if there is a gift matching plan available that could be used to increase your effective donation. At print time the following Puget Sound companies are known to offer matching gift programs to their employees: Boeing, Microsoft, Philips and Starbucks.