Finishing Construction in Old Folsom!



Russet release (red) being stamped

Hello and welcome back to Local Fruit!

Our home now has flatwork, which is construction talk for the finish concrete used in patios and stairs. The back patio included stamped concrete for the porch and garage steps; the front concrete work includes a short sidewalk. The back yard was designed and framed a few days before, but Rich was still modifying the shape of the front steps on the morning of the pour. It was fun to design the shapes ourselves, collaborating with spray paint and a tape measure. We love the stamp pattern called Roman Slate. All of the concrete in our home was delivered and installed by skilled tradesmen, and it was a pleasure to meet them and admire their work.



Pouring front steps



After the concrete pour, the next thing was to build the fence. Unfortunately the fence fails to keep rude people out of our yard. The day the fence was installed a couple walked in the gate expecting to tour our home.  The next evening we found large dog prints and a pile of poop in the patio area. During the day someone had brought a dog with HUGE paws into the yard and left behind a HUGE pile of dog poop. Peeeewww.



White Oak - with the oil in progress



Today was exciting as we met the floor subcontractor, Phillip Hawk, and saw how beautifully the floor finishing is progressing. First the raw wood was installed, covered in putty, sanded and oiled. We won’t be able to walk on the floors for three days while the oil application sets. Next week the floors will be given two coats of urethane coating. Our flooring subcontractor is truly an artisan!

The $/SF of prefinished flooring was a little lower at big box stores and the wholesale distributors, but when considering the cost of flooring parts and installation on stairs the cost for prefinished floors would have been higher than the cost of flooring using raw materials and local craftsmanship. The quality of our floor is superior to prefinished floors: it feels very solid and will have a smooth water impervious coating. Solid wood flooring is more durable and easier to maintain that prefinished flooring.  It has a long lifespan and can be repaired and restained many times if needed. Sorry that these photos are grainy, they were taken by a Palm Pre cellphone.

White Oak - Raw wood installed





Oil application in process







Oiled white oak really warms up a room

Big news today! The solar PV meter was set today! I don’t know if it was connected to the utility, but I will check over the weekend to see if the meter is spinning backward. An upcoming blog entry will talk about our experience with the solar installation and the anxiety of dealing with our electric utility (SMUD) for solar meter connection and energy incentives.

The New White House in Old Town

White House

 Hello and welcome to Local Fruit. The entry this week is just for fun!  The house is taking shape and is wrapped in white moisture barriers – Tyvek on the exterior walls and a roofing under layer on the roof surfaces.  It is all white right now, and very visible from across the river.

View from the parking garage toward Sutter St.

This photo shows site work at the old rail yard which is being redeveloped in Historic Folsom.  Combined with the City of Folsom’s renovations on Sutter Street and the facades being rebuilt, the old merchant district is beginning to sparkle again.  The City is celebrating with a grand party on May 7^th, 2011.  For news, go to http://www.folsom.ca.us/depts/redevelopment_and_housing/redevelopment/sutter_street_revitalization_2010/default.asp .

View of Lake Natoma

Negro Bar at Lake Natoma (Folsom Lake State Park)

Rainbow Bridge & the old truss bridge (American River)

These photos were taken from across the American River and provide a glimpse of why we enjoy Old Folsom so much.  The area has character: history, wildlife, and plenty to see and do. Within the Historic District are charming neighborhoods, a state recreation area with river access and bike paths, restaurants and funky retail shops.  There is plenty to see and do, with street festivals and events throughout the year.

Waiting for the Permit

We are still waiting for the permit...

Our project is in that anxious phase between submitting to the City and receiving a permit to build.  This is a very frustrating phase because there is so little feedback to us as owners of the project.  We submitted to the City in October, and hoped to have a permit in hand in November and be able to start construction.  Our wonderful builder, Gai Kirkegaard, is as eager to proceed as we are; he is equally frustrated with the City of Folsom and the on-going challenges that are put before us.  We really do want to build a house, and we really do want to pay a boatload of fees to the City.  It is reasonable to think that the City staff would be supportive and receptive to our small project as we are putting people to work and generating much needed fee revenue for the City.

Meanwhile, the clock is ticking.  This phase of a construction project is not supposed to take long, unless your project is in wholesome Folsom! Today is December 2, 2010;  With any luck we will have a permit by Christmas and we will wait for the rains to subside so that the subcontractors can start our foundation.  The pressure will be on to finish by 7/1 so we can move out of the rental an into our home.

http://gaikirkegaardconstruction.com/