An Unfortunate Delay of Things to Come...

About a month ago a number of people, most of whom are future tenants of The Highpoint, came over to visit me at home after a long day's work.  Along with Claire and Rob and our neighbor Russell, we sort of had this informal spontaneous gathering of friends that was very much reminiscent of the community that developed at the old building on Moore Street.  We had a great time hanging out and catching up.  It reminded me of why I have spent the past 5 years pushing through the purchase and development of the new building on West Broad street and in many ways it made some personal struggles more bearable just knowing that those people were there.

I have a vision for The Highpoint and the people it will serve.  Even though it does not exist yet, this newly renovated construct of brick and mortar is something that is as clear as anything in front of me.   All of the delays and setbacks that keep pushing that vision away have been both exhausting and frustrating and have often left me second guessing myself and filled me with doubt.

One of the most difficult things for me is letting people down, and this morning I had to send out an email update to our future tenants with a revised schedule for completion that sets the opening date back by a couple of months.  While I have done everything in my power to pull this thing together, it still feels like I have failed this community of wonderful people.  I know in the scheme of things, this building will come into its own (soon) and serve as a home for a vibrant community of talented people and that this delay will be a small detour that we will eventually find our way around.  But right now it hurts.  I want to thank everyone for sticking with me.  It means a lot.  The support that I have gotten from my family and friends - my father, Claire, Rob(s), Jack and John, and everyone who has signed on with us - has been immeasurable and I cannot thank you all enough.

This will happen.


To our future tenants,

It is with much disappointment that I come to you with a revised schedule on the completion date of for the building.  Last Friday in my weekly meeting with the general contractor I discussed the schedule and the likelihood of the building being completed in late November or December and they admitted that they had fallen behind schedule and January 19th is an accurate completion date for phase 1.  This includes all of the tenant spaces except those reserved for Virginia Grace Events, Photosynthesis, Claybrook Pottery, and Salvaged Love Jewelry.  The last four spaces will come online 1 month after the completion of phase 1.  The revised schedule takes into account building inspections and approval for certificate of occupancy.  While the general contractor got off to a quick start in July, there have been a number of delays with some of the various subcontractors that have pushed the schedule back.  Since Friday's meeting, I have been working on going over the revised schedule provided by the GC to confirm material orders and contacted the different trades to make certain the date I am bringing you is accurate.

I am sorry for this delay.  As I have been monitoring the building progress my concern for an on time completion has grown.  As many of you know, this project has taken the better part of five years to develop and I have been subject to many hard lessons, but the most difficult thing is being a conduit for inaccurate information.  Robert, Claire and I know how important it is to have a reliable place that serves as your professional home and I know this delay will put a crimp in many of your respective plans.

Contractual, none of you are obligated to your respective leases as we have failed to meet the completion date.  Perhaps the most difficult thing in letting all of you down is the prospect of losing some of you.  Over the past couple of months in talking with all of you and introducing you to one another at the open houses, I have come to discover a a wonderful group of people that I have connected with and have become deeply invested in watching grow as a community and succeed professionally.

Please contact me individually with questions and to let me know if you are able to continue on with us as a tenant.  The official start date for the majority of the tenants would be February 1st but you would be able to begin moving into the spaces as soon as the construction is completed in January.  We will be having an on location open house in November for people to see the progress and walk through the space.

If this delay is not acceptable and you need to find another more suitable place, we completely understand and we can refund your deposit in full immediately.  But if you can stick with us and see this through, it would mean a great deal and we would love to preserve every bit of what we are working to build.

David Morrison