At the end of September in 2021, Chris & I go into the half demolished building and set about to exploring what the working area might look like. Using tape on the floor we layout what we imagine the countertop/working space could be. We spend 2.5 hours trying a few iterations and expanding the footprint of the countertops until we are satisfied. The layout is effective and leaves enough room to expand.
A few days later, we meet with Dan of Santa Mama coffee and show him our tape-on-floor plan. He offers a few suggestions, but more or less approves of our layout. He points out that we will need space for the water filtration system and he suggested adding a glass cleaning station onto the countertop.
For the next few months, the work consists mostly of working with the architect, Gus Campuzano. He would email us a question regarding equipment choice or lighting arrangements or layout and we would spend a few days considering options and then sending him our response. Over the course of the conversations, the working space grows and shifts to the back wall, bathrooms move.
Eventually, we agree that the planning is complete and we take the drawings and permit application to the planning office of the town. A few days later I get a phone call about some additional information they need in the drawings. Gus is advised and then he is confused. How do we go about getting a signed letter from the Health Department of Pennsylvania regarding the sinks? I ask Gus, is this normal? Gus replies that he has never been asked for such a thing.
I check in with the town to ensure that they in fact want this letter and then I begin asking around. I send an email to the Department of Health main contact and their response is not helpful. It is vague and doesn’t address my question. A friend gives me the phone number of a local health inspector and I get him on the phone on my first attempt. He is confused as to the request which concerns me. The inspector explains that when the construction is complete, they will come by and certify the establishment. I reiterate that the town will not give me the permit to begin construction until they have a letter stating the placements of the sinks has been approved by the health department. He asks which town is asking for this information and when I tell him, he says, ‘of course.’ The inspector is apologetic and explains that they don’t preemptively certify or write letters for layouts.
I spend a few more minutes on the phone with the inspector getting an idea of what sinks I will need and their layout and after I get off of the phone I pass on the sink information to the architect who incorporates them into the drawings. I am really anxious when I bring the drawings to the town and explain that the health inspector advised us on the sink placement. The clerks at the town shrug and accept the drawings. I ask if that is OK and someone from the planning department comes up, accepts the drawings and we are moving forward again.
I wait a week. And I wait another week. I hear nothing from the town. I wait two more weeks and still nothing. If you have ever dealt with government inspectors then you know that it can be an interesting experience. You treat them with a deference that you would not extend to any other group of people. You know that it is inadvisable to get on their bad side. You know that if you upset them, they can make your life miserable. So I patiently wait and wonder how long this process should take and when it is acceptable to follow up with the town.
After 4 weeks of waiting, I return to the town office and explain that I have been waiting and that I would like to know how long I should expect to wait for a response on my permit application. When the clerks go to the back to check in with the permitting, a man that had been standing the room listening walked up to me and had a quiet conversation. He explained that he is a newly elected town supervisor and that he is really upset to learn that I have been waiting 4 weeks and that he wants to help ensure that businesses in the town are being supported. He explained that he believes the town and everyone in the town benefits when buildings are occupied and businesses are thriving.
What a relief it is to feel like you have an ally in an organization that you don’t really understand and that sometimes can feel like an adversary. He gave me his phone number and asked that I keep him updated on my progress. It turned out that my paperwork had been forgotten. They thought that I had not submitted the updates, so I waited 4 weeks for something that should have taken 48 hours. A few days later I had the permits that I needed and was ready to begin construction.
Because we had waited almost 3 years to get to the point of working on the building, we had gotten to a point that we were no longer waiting and had committed ourselves to other projects. That meant that I had to finish up my construction commitments before I could begin working on the building. Even though we had the permits, there was almost no activity on the building for about a month while I finished other jobs. But, 4 weeks later, we began to work on the building.