Restoration of the Star of Israel

Updates from the Restoration Chair of the USH Board of Trustees, Ken Schept

Phase 2: The eagle has landed

Literally. On Wednesday, September 1, our contractors returned the re-gilded bald eagle to its perch above the ark and left the building. One day ahead of schedule and on budget.

After a pause to clean up for the bar mitzvah on August 7, work resumed and moved full-speed for the rest of the month. Our contractors devoted the first couple of weeks in August to the remaining heavy work, including sanding and refinishing the floor on the main level of the bima. They devoted the end of the month to the finishing details including: laying carpet, cleaning the balcony brass railing, painting the balcony supports and refinishing pews. They also shifted from stripping the old lacquer finish from the ark, which took more than a month of pain-staking work, to applying a new stain and oil finish. Following that process, they gilded architectural details that add both refinement and drama.

Some punch-list items remain, which we'll attend to after the holidays. We did not keep the lighting over the ark wall, for example, and instead enclosed the space in oak. The finish looks more refined, but we'll live with it for a while before deciding whether to add back the lights. In either case, we have some rewiring to do. Similarly, after the High Holidays we will remove the six pews from the alcove in the rear of the sanctuary in order to provide ourselves with more space flexibility for classes and activities. These pews will be stored for about six months with the fifteen pews that we've already removed to improve seating comfort. Within six months we'll decide whether to dispose of the pews or return them to the sanctuary.

Thank you to.
The community for financially supporting this project and for your patience during this disruptive period.

The heads of our Capital Campaign, past and present: Carol Losos, Rachel Goldberg, Lauren Calmas, Heidi Learner and Talya Schaffer; and Jane Klueger for her record keeping.

Members of the Restoration committee, especially our member/architect, Russell Kriegel.

Please hold the date Sunday, December 5, during Hanukkah, for a rededication program to properly thank everyone associated with Phases 1 and 2 of the Restoration of the historic Star of Israel.

Finally, I want to acknowledge our architect, Alex Gorlin, and our Phase 2 contractors for their excellent workmanship and for the respect they showed our community in working around our sometimes difficult schedule of classes, holidays and simchas. These contractors include our general contractor, MLB (Raul Menares and Harold Berlowe), the plasterers and painters from FPV, and our restoration artist, Mary Ann Fernandez.

Here is a photographic timeline of the final month of the restoration.

 

Phase 2: A month to go

In this twelfth week of the restoration, we're pausing to do an interim clean up and prepare the sanctuary for the Bar Mitzvah of Leo Hochhauser on Saturday, August 7. Immediately after the bar mitzvah, with a month until the High Holidays, we will move rapidly to complete the remaining projects, which include:

• Refinishing pews: We've sent 12 pews to be stripped of old lacquer. These pews are the only ones that have never been restored. After they're stripped we will refinish them and clean all the other pews so that they're compatible.
• Rewiring: We will install new wiring for the lights over the ark, the eternal light and the light inside the ark, which we will replace. With some of the plaster around and over the ark wall open for rewiring, we're also going to conceal the low-voltage security wire.
• Upgrading the lights over the ark: We're reducing the lighting surrounding the ark wall, removing all the outlets that were not original. We're also deciding whether to keep the existing look with "arcade lights" over the ark or move to a more subtle approach, perhaps with recessed lights. Our architect and lighting designer will recommend options.



We removed the plaster for the arch at the top of the ark wall to expose old wiring and replace it. The wiring serves the eternal light and the row of lights in the arch. (July 21)

• Refinishing the balcony hangers: The rods that help suspend the balcony are sheathed in a metal embossed with a decorative leaf pattern. Over time, some of this decorative sheath broke off. We're filling in missing pieces using a bonding compound. Then we're applying a white paint and gold highlights, which we'll coat with shellac to produce a unifying and aged look.






Restoration artist Mary Ann Fernandez added the gold finish to the chandeliers, prepared the ark wall for staining and varnishing and, shown here, cleaned the balcony hangers before applying an antique finish. (July 14)

• Sanding floors: We plan to sand and refinish the sanctuary floor on the main level during the third week of August.
• Installing carpet: After we refinish the floors, we'll install new carpet at the rear of the main level of the sanctuary, on the bima, and down both aisles

The ark wall and the railings of the bima are completely stripped to the raw oak. We decided to wait a few days before applying stain and varnish to the ark wall for a couple of reasons. First, we've removed all the plaster from the arch over the ark wall in order to replace the old wiring. Because this job produces a lot dust, it made more sense to do the finish the ark after the electrical work is completed. Second, to obtain the best finishing results, we're using oil-base products. Because the products emit an odor, it's better to apply the finishes after the end of camp when activity in both the Star of Israel and Kaplan buildings is at the lowest point in the year.

The sanctuary now looks much like it will at the High Holidays. We've repaired all the plaster, painted, coated the chandeliers with an antique finish, sanded and sealed the balcony floors and installed a new oak floor in the Garbade Room. We've repaired the plaster and painted both the north and south stairways and the tower rooms. Along with stripping the ark wall and the railings of the bima, we installed a wheelchair ramp on the north side of the bima. To keep the surface of the wheel chair ramp consistent with aged sanctuary floors, we used oak planks from the bima, replacing them with plywood, which will be covered when the bima is carpeted.

By the end of July, we'd painted all the walls and trim in the sanctuary. We erected scaffolding in order to apply a gold antique finish to the chandeliers. (July 14)

Phase 2: The half-way point

We just completed week seven of our 15-week summer restoration project.

By Friday, July 9, we'd repaired all the crumbling plaster in the sanctuary and the south stairway, primed the walls and applied a first coat of paint. We'd also removed the finish from most of the ark wall.

The sanctuary now is painted in warm shades of beige with a slight gradation from lighter to darker between the balcony and the main level. The colors maintain the serene and historic feeling of the sanctuary while making the space somewhat brighter. The colors will work well with the refinished wood and with the color range in the existing and planned stained glass windows.

As we progressed, we discovered a few unanticipated projects. One was mandatory because it concerned safety. The row of lights over the ark, and the eternal light, still were powered with old wiring. On Thursday, July 8, we opened channels in the surrounding plaster surfaces and plan to replace all of the old wiring. We'll also reduced the number of lights by eliminating any that were not original and we'll wire for adding subtler lighting in the future, if not now.

Two other unanticipated projects were elective: adding an antique finish to the chandeliers and applying a decorative finish to the support rods that help suspend the balcony. Scaffolding was erected on Friday, July 9, so that the work can begin on Monday, July 12. These changes add some cost to the job, but it makes sense to accomplish this work now to avoid future disruptions of this magnitude.

To help afford these changes, we redirected some funds. For example the top surface of balcony knee wall, to which the brass railing is fastened, needed extensive repair. The original plan called for replacing some of the wood and refinishing the surface around the entire balcony. Instead, we're going to repair and then paint the surface. Similarly, we'd intended to hand finish molding around the sanctuary doors. Instead, we're going to paint those moldings, but strip and refinish the doors, as planned.

To simplify the overall job, given the time constraints, we decided not to dramatically change the seating arrangement, although we will remove several rows of pews to provide more legroom and space to add new bookshelves near the sanctuary entrances. We'll also add a wheelchair access ramp to the bima.

Phase 2: The 15-week summer

The sanctuary is closed now for restoration.

On Saturday, June 26, the community held its first Shabbat service in the Social Hall, where regular services will take place for the duration of the summer.

Phase 2 of the restoration kicked off officially on Monday, May 24. We concentrated the early work in the balcony to keep the sanctuary clear for the Bar Mitzvah of Harry Fernandez on Saturday, June 19.

The next day we moved the Torahs and the ark curtain to the Social Hall ark and brought prayer books and tallitot downstairs. Along with attempting to transform the Social Hall into a sacred space, we also tried to make it feel more comfortable by installing a window air conditioner. (Thank you Rabbi Scheinberg, Louise Kurtz, Steve Sperber, Rachelle Grossman and David Casto).

The sanctuary will remain closed for the rest of the summer and services will take place in the Social Hall except for the Shabbat of August 7, when the community will celebrate the Bar Mitzvah of Leo Hochhauser. The sanctuary then will close again and reopen for the High Holidays.

During the first five weeks of restoration work-Monday, May 24, to Friday, June 25-we accomplished the following:

Repaired plaster and a first coat of paint in the balcony (June 25)

• Repaired the plaster in the balcony, the tower rooms and the south stairway.
• Selected colors for the walls and trim (shades of white and beige that will lighten the sanctuary while maintaining its warmth.)
• Sanded several test sections of the ark wall to reveal the wood and consider finishing options.
• Primed and applied a first coat of paint to the walls and trim in much of the balcony and to parts of the south stairway and tower rooms.
• Began stripping the old finish off of the ark wall.

Early stages of stripping the ark wall (June 25)

We're now entering an intense six-week period prior to the one-day reopening for the Bar Mitzvah on August 7. We soon will shift the painting effort from the balcony, tower rooms and south stairway to the main floor of the sanctuary and the north stairway. We also will assess to what extent we can stretch Phase 2 beyond the core work in order to cover some unexpected but mandatory items (rewiring the lights over the ark wall) and some elective but desirable work (refinishing certain pews and the balcony hangers).

To spend our limited funds most effectively and to avoid further serious disruption of synagogue life, Phase 2 focuses almost exclusively on the sanctuary. The core of the work includes:

• Plaster repair and painting in the sanctuary, tower rooms and stairways.
• Ark wall and bimah restoration.
• Floor refinishing in the sanctuary, both levels.
• Carpet installation in the sanctuary, first level.

To accomplish as much as possible during this concentrated 15-week summer restoration, we continue to raise funds. Leaders of the capital campaign have been asking members to consider earlier payment of pledge balances. In a few instances, the campaign leaders have sought initial or additional pledges. (Thank you Lauren Calmas, Heidi Learner and Talya Schaeffer).

We realize that especially in the current economic climate a phone call or email from the capital campaign is not your most eagerly awaited communication. Please know that we appreciate everyone who takes the time to respond to our efforts-both the individuals and families able to contribute and those who graciously decline.

Photos courtesy of Ken Schept

Restoration Update and Schedule

Phase 2 of the restoration of the Star of Israel is kicking into high gear.

As of Monday, June 21, the sanctuary will be closed for the rest of the summer, with the exception of Saturday, August 7, for Leo Hochhauser's bar mitzvah. The north and south stairways will be closed off alternately as work proceeds in those spaces.

Throughout the summer, services for Shabbat and holidays will take place in the social hall, which will be transformed into our temporary sanctuary this Sunday. The sanctuary will reopen for the High Holidays.

The following projects will be completed during this 11-week work period-June 21 to September 1:

• Plaster repair and painting in the sanctuary, tower rooms and stairways.
• Ark wall and bima restoration.
• Floor refinishing in the sanctuary, both levels.
• Carpet installation in the sanctuary, first level.

Other projects-such as restoration of pews and woodwork-can be accomplished with additional funding. To contribute to the restoration campaign, please contact Lauren Calmas, Heidi Learner or Talya Schaeffer, or email campaign@hobokensynagogue.org.

Help Restore the Sanctuary by the High Holidays

We can complete substantial restoration of the sanctuary by the High Holidays if we raise sufficient funds-about $30,000-by June 30. The sanctuary is the primary focus of Phase 2 of the restoration of the Star of Israel. The work, which will begin this spring, divides into three stages:

• Stage 1: Repair and paint the sanctuary walls, stairways and tower rooms.
• Stage 2: Refinish the ark wall, bimah and other woodwork.
• Stage 3: Refinish the floors and pews in the sanctuary.

Each stage costs roughly $65,000. The Kaplan Family Foundation donated the money for Stage 1. Most of Stage 2 can be paid for with balance left in our capital campaign account. Completing Stage 3-and the full restoration of the sanctuary-requires additional funds.

To raise those funds, the capital campaign committee organized two events during April, a community brunch at the synagogue on Sunday, April 25, and a parlor meeting at the home of the Calmas family on Thursday evening, April 22. Both events featured a talk on the history of the ark by Dr. Vivian Mann, a JTS professor in Jewish art and Curator Emeritus of The Jewish Museum in Manhattan.

Many individuals and families responded positively to the request for financial support. The Mason Family generously pledged to match all donations up to a total of $15,000. To complete the work this summer, we need to raise $30,000 by June 30, the end of the membership year. It's desirable to complete the work this summer for at least three reasons:

• To continue the momentum from Phase 1: We finished all the infrastructure work, including new wiring and roof, by the High Holidays last year.
• To benefit from advantageous prices. Construction costs will increase as the building business recovers from the recession.
• To avoid disrupting synagogue life. It is difficult to conduct extensive restoration work without impacting the life of our growing and active community with many simchas, a preschool and a learning center.

Please pledge any amount that you're able to comfortably pay by June 30, 2010. Or accelerate payment of an existing pledge to meet that deadline. Contact any of the capital campaign co-chairs directly-Lauren Calmas, Heidi Learner and Talya Schaeffer-or email campaign@HobokenSynagogue.org. Also, if your employer matches charitable contributions, USH, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, could be eligible.

Thank you.

 

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