APPROVED!

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APPROVED! That is the abridged version of the story entitled, “The December 10th Akron Borough Council Meeting, H*VMI’s Conditional Use Hearing – Decision.” Please read on for the unabridged version of the story.

At the start of the Council meeting, after the usual formalities, the decision concerning H*VMI was the agenda item on the table. The Borough Solicitor summarized the events that took place from November 12th to December 10th and explained the options available to Borough Council. A member of Council made a motion to approve, pursuant to the agreed upon conditions. The motion was seconded and, with no discussion, carried unanimously. Praise ye the Lord, Halleluiah!

What does that mean? It means we can move ahead! But what does that mean? Move ahead to what? Are we breaking ground now? Is there another step? Let’s look at this a different way. If this project were likened to a professional sport, football, for instance, the process could be described like this:

  • H*VMI is a minor league football team. Back when we were preparing to purchase the property we went through a process to amend the zoning ordinance. Before we could move into the major leagues we requested to add/change the rules of the game: how big the field is, where the goal posts can go, what is out of bounds and how many people are allowed to be in the stands. We had specific plans for our stadium and we wanted to be sure the rules allowed us to do what we needed to do.

  • In this most recent process – called the Conditional Use Hearing – H*VMI was asking to officially join the National Football League, governed by these new rules. This is the “pros,” folks, the major leagues and we wanted in. We needed to prove that we are, in fact, a football team and that we have the ability to play by the rules.

  • Land Development – Unfortunately this is where my analogy starts to fall apart; however, it’s not completely lost. In the next phase, Land Development, we will be showing the Commissioner of the National Football League our playbook. He, along with his expert engineer and other Council members will look at our game plan and make sure it complies with all the rules. At the end of this Land Development process we will be ready for the Big Game!

  • The Big Game is called CONSTRUCTION – we will need to get different building permits during the construction game but, since our plan will have already been approved, this won’t be a problem.

In the New Year we will be perfecting our “playbook,” the Land Development plan. This includes finalizing each building’s layout and internal structure. Developing and finalizing the site plan and related site work.

As we work on Land Development we will be doing something else to get ready for the big game of CONSTRUCTION: gathering fans. We want as many people as possible to join us for the game. We will be communicating with you in advance of construction time about how you can play a part in the big game. We need your prayers as we work through this project. It has been a long time coming but God is clearly orchestrating every step. Praise Him for all He has done.