A Grand Lodge Audio Update with Dianne Polk - Director of Operations

Get the latest update on the PenFed Grand Lodge build from Chef Larry and Dianne Polk, Director of Operations at the Warrior Retreat at Bull Run. As the lodge nears completion the focus is shifting to the furnishings. You can help furnish the house by contributing to the Make A House A Home program. Here you can purchase specific items for the Lodge.

Together, Chef Larry and Dianne unwrap the latest and greatest achievements in what's shaping up to be a haven for culinary and comfort delights. Diane brings her project management prowess to the table, detailing the driveway installation that heralds the imminent arrival of top-tier kitchen appliances and the final touches, from a fresh coat of paint to selecting furniture that complements the Lodge's grandeur.

The conversation heats up as they discuss the outdoor kitchen's pizza oven, the promise of warm gatherings around a large fire pit, and the stamped concrete patio supporting the pavilion. With the exterior nearly completed, excitement for the spring bloom is palpable, signaling the final landscaping touches. Mark your calendars for noon on May 18th, when this labor of love opens its doors to the public with a grand ribbon-cutting ceremony. 

Transcript

Larry Zilliox: 0:15

Good morning. I'm Larry Zilliox, Director of Culinary Services here at the Warrior Retreat at Bull Run, and today Dianne Polk, our Director of Operations and the Co-Project Manager for the Grand Lodge Build has stopped in. We're going to do a quick update just to give our listeners an idea of where we're at with the build and welcome, Dianne. Thanks for coming.

Dianne POlk: 0:40

Good morning, Larry. Thank you for having me today. I'm excited to talk about the progress of the Grand Lodge.

Larry Zilliox: 0:45

So the Grand Lodge is how many square feet About?

Dianne POlk: 0:51

8,000? About 8,000. That includes the outdoor pavilion as well.

Larry Zilliox: 0:55

Okay, and that's what I'm excited about, because we're going to have an outdoor kitchen, full kitchen with a pizza oven. So that's probably going to be the last thing that's done, but the project is well underway. Right now, it looks like we're just waiting for the flooring.

Dianne POlk: 1:16

That's correct. One of the biggest things we were waiting for was the driveway to be installed, which it was done last week, and so now that the driveway is done, we'll be able to get all of our kitchen appliances delivered. The heat will be turned on inside the houses, which will enable us to finish painting and get all of the final touches done and ordering furniture. One of the last things to be done is to order the furniture for the rooms, which we're working on right now, picking out the look of what we're trying to achieve there, and then that, in addition, with the outdoor pavilion, which is going to be a phenomenal space, looking at having a very large fire pit area with that, as well as a beaster table, possibly around the edges of the pavilion.

Larry Zilliox: 2:05

Outside the pavilion. So we still need to pour the concrete for the base of the pavilion. The pavilion itself is actually up, correct, and it's roofed. It's got that little copula that's a little bit smaller than the main one, but it looks great. So that's ready to go. Once we get that poured, then we'll be able to start work on the kitchen. The kitchen inside the house is huge. It's going to be amazing. All the cabinetry is in, the countertops are in, the sinks are in. We just need to get the appliances in once the floor is done and then it will have that look of an amazing kitchen. I can't wait for that. So I also noticed that we're doing flagstone on the front porch, correct, and that still needs to be done. But exterior wise, there's not much left to do.

Dianne POlk: 2:59

There is not. Even all the lighting outside is on, all the sconces are on and working, as well as all of the lighting and light fixtures inside the house. And then, speaking of the concrete, for the pavilion is going to be a beautiful stamped concrete, nice, it will be a nice addition to that. We are meeting with some great landscaping groups the end of this week, so we'll be discussing landscaping for the entire area, working together with everybody, figuring out what kind of low lying plants, especially for the front, because we don't want to hide that beautiful porch.

Larry Zilliox: 3:36

Yeah.

Dianne POlk: 3:36

And so things are really starting to move along. Now, now that the weather hopefully will be warming up soon, we're really going to be seeing some progress. I think that our anticipated constructional Completion date somewhere.

Dianne POlk: 3:52

Completion date somewhere around the first week of April, perfect. And then we're going to be seeing some of the new buildings around that time frame, then it need will need to be furnished. Get all the furnishing and get everything in place for the ribbon cutting, which is scheduled for May 18 at 12 o'clock noon, okay, and then it's open to the public.

Larry Zilliox: 4:19

We want everybody to come show up, participate and tour the house. That's a Saturday too by the way. But we're just so excited. Everything is moving along quickly. Like any build, there's always these times when it doesn't seem like anything's happening. A lot of that is due to the weather. It's not easy to build a house in the winter, correct?

Dianne POlk: 4:46

You don't want to do your final painting until you can get the heat turned on. You can't get the tea turned on until something else happens. So it's a series of things, but we are progressing phenomenally and TNT build, our journal contractor, is doing a phenomenal job organizing and managing this project.

Larry Zilliox: 5:06

Yeah, it is a big project. It's a million dollar home and it's not something that's just being slapped together either. If you're when you go inside and you see it, you can see that it's great work. It's going to be a beautiful facility for us. We're just so excited. Comes down to the last sort of thing that we need really is to furnish the home Correct, and we have a program now called Make a House a Home, which is a fundraising program that we've launched to help us furnish the house. And do you have any idea where we're at on how much we've raised through that?

Dianne POlk: 5:47

Not exactly. At this moment I don't have an exact amount, but I do know that we do need a lot more fundraising to get this finalized. Everything from mattresses to pillows, to lamps, to kitchen items.

Larry Zilliox: 6:03

Yeah, we need it all.

Dianne POlk: 6:05

Towels, sheets, everything.

Larry Zilliox: 6:07

Everything you have in your house. We need to start. We can't do it like we're going to get that table and that bed and then we'll get the other stuff later. We need it fully furnished when it goes operational after the ribbon cutting. So, folks, we need help with this. In the show notes we'll be a link to where Make a House a Home is on our web page and this will take you directly to where you can donate and you can pick items that you want to donate for and help us get it furnished. So we're really looking forward to the ribbon cutting and to inviting everyone that Saturday to see what an amazing place it is. Diane, thanks for coming to Stop it In Today for this quick audio update.

Dianne POlk: 6:55

My pleasure.

Larry Zilliox: 6:56

OK, we'll have a regular podcast episode Monday morning 5 AM. Until then, thanks for listening.