Category Archives: What’s New

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year! (or Not)

Beagles, What's New

(by Charissa Durst, originally posted December 23, 2011)

A Counter Argument in Five Points,
or Why I Hate the Holiday Season
By Donut, one of the HDC beagles

Donut wearing bells and her “Merry Christmas or Whatever” expression.

I hate Christmas! I know, that’s a terrible thought since my Humans and most everyone else at HDC seem to really like it. This is my seventh Christmas, and each one is worse than the last. First of all, what’s with the costumes with bells? Especially the hats—I really hate hats! And then my Humans keep flashing lights at me and clicking at me with little metal boxes. Second, who keeps moving the furniture around? This year, my couch got moved to the other side of the room for a fake tree! Can you believe that?! I have to be ambidextrous to get on this thing now!

Third, what’s with all these deliveries! I’m barking myself hoarse keeping track of all the strange boxes that come through the door, and it happens at both my home and the office. And fourth, get this, they make me sit with some strange bearded guy in a red suit! I really don’t understand that.

He seems like a nice guy, but why does everyone want to sit on his lap?

Here I am with bells on!

And finally, do they really need to keep playing the same music over and over again? Okay, lots of humans have this issue, too, so I know I’m not alone. But there’s one song my Humans turn up really loud, and it seems to be on TV quite a bit, too. I’ve heard it so often I’ve put my own sentiments into it:

It’s the most miserable time of the year.
With the kids next door yelling,
and everyone telling you,
“Get out of here!”
It’s the most miserable time of the year!There’ll be couches for dragging,
and boxing and bagging,
Getting tossed in the snow!
There’ll be crates being loaded and
tales of being scolded from Christmases
long, long ago.It’s the most miserable time of the year.
I’ll be diving for cover
with trees tipping over
and so much to fear!
Oh, it’s the most miserable time of the year!

And in case you think I’m being a Grinch, it’s not just Christmas. I also can’t stand weekends or ball games or mobs of small children, but that’s another blog…

What’s New Fall 2016

Hardlines Design Company, What's New

This Fall’s edition of What’s New highlights the company’s big move, showcases a rehabilitation project and a HABS project, and a new video offering featuring Donut.

Hardlines Design Company Sells Cultural Resources Division to Commonwealth Heritage Group

On April 11, 2016, HDC decided to divest itself of the cultural resources department in order to focus on architecture, historic architecture, preservation planning, and architectural history. See the news articles in Columbus Business First and Clintonville This Week.

HDC Completes Rehabilitation of Historic Church

exterior-after-sunnyinterior-after-chancel

View of exterior (left) and interior (right) of the rehabilitated Wildermuth Memorial Church.

In the Fall of 2015, HDC was commissioned by the Wildermuth Memorial Church Board to prepare an assessment and recommendations report to rehabilitate the church for the congregation’s 200th anniversary in 2016. The church was likely built in the 1830s and then moved across the street to the current location in 1875 and moved further back from the road in the early 1950s to accommodate a road widening project. The Board approved the recommendations and commissioned HDC to move forward with the design and construction of all the recommended work. Exterior work consisted of a new faux wood shake roof on the church and a new asphalt shingle roof on the attached youth center, reconstruction of the furnace flue/chimney, and repair/refurbishment of the windows, siding, trim, and shutters. Interior work included removal of two levels of acoustical ceilings to restore the original ceiling height with a new drywall finish, removal of the carpet and restoration of the wood floor and base, and restoration of the original chancel floor with carpet only in the area of the 1970s expansion. The church held a 200th anniversary public open house on July 30, 2016, that was attended by almost 300 people.

HDC goes to Alaska for the First Time

1658-northeast-cornerinterior-looking-northeast

HDC was sub-contracted by Versar, Inc. to complete HABS documentation of a hangar proposed for demolition at Eielson Air Force Base near Fairbanks, Alaska, for the Alaska Air National Guard. In October, HDC President/Historic Architect Charissa Durst traveled to Fairbanks with Jeff Bates, who has been HDC’s HABS/HAER photographer for over 20 years. Building 1190 was one of four identical hangars constructed from 1946-1947 to prepare aircraft for transport to the Soviet Union under the lend-lease program after World War II. The other three hangars were lost to fire or demolished to make way for new construction. This hangar (Building 1190) was retained and has been used since 1958 as an air freight terminal under Air Mobility Command to deliver supplies to locations all over the world for all branches of the Department of Defense.

A Day in the Park with Donut

img_2515

If you ever wondered what exactly Donut does when she’s at the park, check out this compilation video: