The Dojo of Karate

Remember that song by Puff Daddy, now known as P.Diddy? I think it came out around the mid 90’s. That’s how I feel right now. Granted that can probably all change tomorrow, but things have been moving right along. And it’s exciting!!

Plumber

I met with the plumber Bob had referred me - his name is Carl. He came by The Dojo of Monday to take a look at the place and see what needs to be done. Basically he needs to know where the main sewage line goes through under the concrete so he can find out where to break the concrete and tap into the line to add a toilet. He had an idea where it can be located, but apparently construction workers charge $25/sqft when breaking concrete! So, in order to save some money, he needs to know where the 3 inch line runs. I called the city, and apparently they throw away plans once they have been approved… No Joke. Since it’s private property, they do not retain them any more. However, the City of Westminster is starting to keep “as-builts” (architectural drawings) because new tenants of commercial are requesting them.

Anyway… my property managers don’t have a copy either!! So, I spent the past two days talking with the City and talking with Pauw and Associates, the firm that drew up the plans for Willow Run, asking for the plumbing of the “as-builts”. The city sent me something that may help, but the contact person for Pauw and Associates got in touch with me today and sent me a PDF copy, as well as a hard copy of the plumbing “as-builts”. I got them over to Bob since his associate lives about 5 minutes away from Carl. We’ll see what he says…

General Contractor

I also got in touch with Dave from D & G Construction, as he will be my General Contractor. He was still interested in the project, as I told him it should be pretty easy - but what do I know. Sent him over the PDF docs of the current “as-builts” and he called me today. In his words, “this is stupid easy”. That’s great to hear! Dave said he can get the framing done in about one day. He then recommended I get an electrician to do all the wiring before drywalling the place, so I can get it inspected. Once that’s done, he’ll drywall, mud, patch and paint the place.

I’m now just waiting to hear back from the HVAC guy so he can move around a few of the vents.

Outdoor Sign

As for my outdoor electrical sign. I found a vendor called Signs By Tomorrow, located in Westminster. They were pretty comparable to other signage vendors and they provide LED lights, which are more cost efficient and 60% more durable. They will need to make some drawings of the plan, so it can be approved by my landlord. Once done, they can start production.

Other then that, I think things are moving right along. I’m about 6 weeks away from officially opening my doors for business. It’s getting tight, but the more-and-more I talk to some sub contractors and how easy the project is, the more I feel this can all be finalized within 4 weeks.

Marketing

My first marketing piece through Val-U-Ads is suppose to hit Broomfield households by either tomorrow or Friday. That means, I could start to get people calling or emailing asking for more info. Hopefully I can get some pre-enrollments! By the way, if you end up calling me, I will be changing my cell phone’s voice message since I have been distributing my number. I haven’t setup a land line or VOIP line yet, so until that happens you will be calling The Dojo of Karate.

One last thing!… I finally designed a new business card! Check it out!

I know… quite a bit of stuff going on these past few days. But like I said, “can’t nobody hold me down, oh no, I got to keep on movin’”!

OUT!!