With the help of a local contractor and other members of the community, the Marshallese New Beginnings Church will have time to renovate the former George Hildebrand Elementary School that the church has called home for several years.
The church houses many of its members, who moved to the U.S. from the Marshall Islands, in the former school building. Burke County deemed the building unfit for living in April and gave the church 30 days to come up with a solution.
On Monday in a special meeting, the Burke County Board of Commissioners gave the church until Nov. 14 to renovate the property to meet minimum county code. The decision came after the board heard from Burke County’s Chief Building Inspector Steve Holden and contractor Curt Abee about what it will take to meet the code. County inspectors previously deemed the building unsafe due to peeling lead paint, inadequate plumbing, unsafe electrical wiring, defective construction and decay.
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The building, located at 8123 George Hildebrand School Road, Connelly Springs, where members of the Marshallese New Beginnings Church live. Burke County building inspectors and the fire marshal have deemed the buildings unsafe for living, but the church is getting help from a local contractor and subcontractors to bring the building up to code.
The former elementary school is at 8123 George Hildebran School Road. The church holds services in the old school building and members have been living in the annex building to the side of the school building. The annex building consists of eight “apartments,†commissioners were told Monday.
On April 10, the board held a quasi-judicial hearing after the church appealed an order from the county to vacate the building.
At that hearing, commissioners gave the church 30 days to produce a written estimate of repairs from a contractor, a written line of credit from a bank or another lending institution and grants the group can obtain to help with repairs to avoid eviction.
Abee sent the county the information it required on May 12 that included information on the contractor, electrical code compliance plans, air conditioning and heat plans, an estimate for eight mini split heat pumps and architect drawings. A letter from Abee included in the documents estimated the cost of bringing the annex building up to code at $150,000.
During the meeting, Abee said he believes the work can be done sooner than six months.
“We’re going to do it as quickly as we can,†Abee said.
The church plans to move families out of two of the apartments in the annex building into temporary housing on the property. Once those two apartments are completed, families would move back in, and the process would be repeated until all eight apartments have been brought up to code.
Abee said he plans to buy two Norfolk Southern railroad car cabins that Innovative Bridge Company is selling in Hildebran.
The cabins were previously used by people while they worked on the railroad. The units have a mini fridge, an AC unit, two bedrooms and two bathrooms and have been retrofitted to be used for living space.
The price for both car cabins would be $11,000.
Before the board’s vote, Commissioner Brian Barrier said he is worried about what liability the county has if a member of the church were to get hurt in the annex while work is being done.
Attorney Martha Thompson, who has been special counsel to the board for the proceedings, said now that licensed contractors, architects, electricians and plumbers are involved, the liability is between the contractors and the owner of the building.
Holden said some work has already been done to make the buildings safer, including lowering water temperatures and separating electrical systems. He said an electrician told him any other potential electrical hazards can be made safe while it’s under construction.
Church Pastor Tommy Laibwij told the board that some members have applied for temporary low-income housing elsewhere.
Abee, who also is an insurance agent, said he just felt like God was calling him to help where he could.
“I prayed and prayed and prayed about it,†Abee said. “The Bible says, and I put that in my post, I think it’s Proverbs 3:27, it says, ‘Withhold not good to them that is due if it’s in the power of thine hand to do it.’â€
Abee said he got together with some electricians and heating and air workers and put forward a proposal to help get the work done.
Abee said some money has been raised for the project.
The church members are from the Republic of the Marshall Islands, which has a compact of free association with the United States. The people of the Marshall Islands are not U.S. citizens but have the right to live, work and go to school in the U.S., according to U.S. immigration.
