Hello, Ovation Nation. It was great to see everyone that could attend July 19th’s town hall at Ovation West. Always a pleasure to see so many friends again and some newer faces in the Brando Theater.
We are thrilled to announce a $1,500 referral bonus for all residents and those who have placed deposits. Friends make the best neighbors! Invite your friends, and ask us more about this bonus.
Ovation West
Ovation West (assisted living and memory care) is doing well as we welcome new residents each week. We invite each of you to join us on August 4 from 4-6 p.m. in celebration of our beautiful Ovation West in the Greater Omaha community.
Ovation East
Albert Castenada, Chief Development Officer of Point Development Company, provided us an update on Ovation East (independent living).
Forensics experts and insurance company have determined that the south third of the building will need to be demolished to the concrete slab. This is due primarily to the amount of water that was used on the building. As a reminder, the Omaha fire chief estimates that they utilized 2.5 million gallons to fight the blaze with the high winds. The amount of water has caused enough damage to the structure that the decision to total demolish that section was the best course of action. Albert compared the wood of the structure to a kitchen sponge. Whereas a kitchen sponge will return to its original shape upon drying, wood does not necessarily.
This will cause a couple of other “dominos” to go into effect:
The southern portion that is being rebuilt will have new permits issued through the city.
Since our original build time, some building codes have changed.
Engineers and architects will begin on the new designs for this section to meet all new requirements.
Currently they are pulling the permit for demolition of the south third of the building. We expect for demolition to begin in approximately 30 days. This will not be a long process to complete the full demolition of this area. Concurrently, our development team and general contractor are working on ordering items that we expect to have long lead times due to the supply chain. Some items that will fall into this category are lighting fixtures, roofing materials, and appliances.
The northern 2/3rds of the building will begin a remodel phase as our general contractor rebuilds the areas that were impacted by water and smoke damage. We are exploring in depth with the insurance company, general contractor, and City of Omaha the viability of opening the northern 2/3rds of the building. his would include all our restaurants (Bees Knees, Miller’s at Omaha, and 1863), the Carson Theater, the library, Route 6 billiards room, outdoor kitchen, and bocci ball court. There are other public areas, such as the 360 Rooftop deck and pavilion and the explorations studio, that we will need to verify which zone they fall into. In fact, today we had sod installed in the back courtyard for the northern 2/3rds. So even as we prepare to tear down the southernmost part, we are moving forward with the northern portion.
We know that the fitness center, pool and hot tub, salon, business center and Three Sister’s Tea Room will be part of the full demolition due to their location in the southernmost 1/3rd of the building.
What’s next
We are hesitant to over promise any dates as we need to complete the design and permit process with the city. Albert feels that a timeline of approximately 12 months for the remodel of the northern 2/3rds and 24 months of the southern 1/3rd is reasonable but does caution that lead times need to be verified for items. As we look forward, we have secured approval from the insurance company to pay fees for expediting the delivery of goods to move this along as expeditiously as possible.
The official cause of the fire has not yet been released by the insurance company. That is expected to be received by our next resident town hall, which will be held on August 23 at 2 p.m. at Ovation West. I hope you all can make it. It is always great to see everyone and to have time with others that share the same journey.
I am happy that we have turned the page on knowing what will happen to the southern portion of the building and are now embarking on the rebuilding portion of this process. We appreciate you and love having you each as part of Ovation Nation.
As always, we are here for you should you need anything. Please reach out to our team. It is our passion to serve.
Kind regards,
Stephanie Grade
General Manager
Stephanie.Grade@ovationbyavamere.com
p 402.999.7900
m 402.800.4643