Second Floor Office Before

In 2005 a gift was made for the renovation of the administrative office of St. Mary's. The Brougham-Cave office building is a small separate building on the church grounds between the east and south parking lots. This tiny building is about 20 years "newer" than the church building itself. Its restoration provided a comfortable and efficient work space for our accounting and other administrative functions and Downtown Outreach.

An office for the Rector was located on the second floor of the Parish Hall. This space was originally built in 1888 as a residence for the priest in charge of the parish. Rectors of St. Mary's lived there from 1888 until 1951.

It was an interesting space with original pine floors and the same decorative mill work around windows and doors as in the nave and parish hall and stained glass windows. The original fireplace is still there along with the electric heating unit that replaced it.



But its 19th century design and construction were not meant for 21st or even 20th century office machinery. Wireless internet solved one problem. But retrofitted phone jacks and electrical outlets dictated the position of furniture or resulted in in wires running across the floor.

The stained glass windows looking out to the west were badly deteriorated. The wooden frames had rotted and the lead holding the decorative panes together had deteriorated. The loose panes let in the outside air, making the rooms very uncomfortable in the winter months. The back door, leading out on to the parish hall roof provided "climate control" in the summer. It also admitted wasps, birds and other creatures to the interior office space. The floor boards had roughened over the years making them difficult to keep clean.

Although Rectors have made use of the office as a work space, it was not suitable for meetings, pastoral counseling sessions and other common uses. That changed in December 2010 with a gift from Dr. Michael Frost and the efforts of the MDF Properties renovation crew.