Cloister Renovation Completed

In November 1925, the President of the University of Minnesota, Lotus Coffman, together with the architects Edwin Hewitt and Edwin Brown, placed the cornerstone to the rising church building at Lake of the Isles. If you look closely, you’ll notice two names on the stone. Lowry Hill Congregational Church 1900, and Lake of the Isles Church 1925. After a fire had destroyed the former church on Lowry Hill, the congregation purchased the new property on the parkway, and chose to rename itself by its new location. The original cloister where the men stood for the celebration, however, did not age well over the past 100 years. The original stone surface, which had grown uneven, and the accompanying patio were increasingly a fall risk.

Although the original renovation project was simply to resurface the cloister with stone, it became clear to the Church Council that a more thorough plan was needed. Matching and replacing the stone wouldn’t eliminate the possible fall risk. After discussions with Fixed Assets, it was decided to replace the stone with tinted and stamped cement. The cost saving in this first step alone allowed the Council the opportunity to consider the possibility of resurfacing the entire patio.

Unfortunately, one flaw in the original design needed to be corrected. All of the rain from the roof flowed through two small down spouts and then across the patio surface. It seemed essential for the ongoing care and maintenance of the patio that the rain water be redirected. Fixed Assets recommended that an additional down spout be added and channeled into underground tiling, and eventually into a water garden in the church lawn.

The completed cloister and patio project is beautiful. The congregation has already enjoyed several Sunday morning coffee hours out on the patio. It is easy for older to members to maneuver around the cement surface and to be less anxious about falling. As the new plantings grow, and the copper down spouts oxidize, it should take on even more of the familiar aged looked.

Thank you to Steve Hoyt, Michelle Reisberg and Diane LaMere for seeing the completion of this project.

To celebrate the project, the church will be holding a summer camp themed barbecue on the patio on Wednesday, August 20th from 5:00–7:00. As in years past, the church will provide the meat, condiments, beverages and buns and you are welcome to bring salads, sides, and sweets. There will even be camp songs lead from the grill and s’mores for dessert.

Peace, Pastor Arden Haug