We are happy to have a few more updates to share regarding our renovations and our donor rewards!
In terms of renovations, the biggest change from our last post was our beautiful cat climbing wall! We painted and coated the shelves to make them scratch resistant and easy to clean. Most have been hung up, but we need to reinforce the two small ones at the bottom, and put up two additional painted shelves and the last bookshelf to make lots of vertical climbing space for the cats.
It’s gone from this:
To this!
We are actually having the ceiling portion (the catwalk and cat chandelier) built by our neighbors, Furniture Makers P.D White & Alex Sutula. We should receive it sometime within a week, so we’re very excited to show it to you! It’ll end up looking like this:
We also spent some time assembling desks. These will provide a workspace in the back of the lounge with ample outlets and internet for those who want to work, study, or telecommute from affoGATO! Those shelves are meant for books, but we think the cats will probably claim them.
The partition wall is looking a lot more finished since the last time we showed you. It’s been painted light grey on both sides. and had the trim installed for the windows and doors. We also found the perfect door that will give the cats extra sunlight during the day and privacy at night. All that is left for that wall are some minor paint touch-ups and window installation! Check out the changes from this:
To this!
All in all, most of our progress the last couple of weeks has been in the form of unglamorous tasks like spot-fixing paint around the baseboards and corners, more cleaning, anchoring the front counter, and figuring out the plumbing and electrical. All very important, but not particularly interesting to photograph!
We also have still not been contacted by the health department, which is one of the main reasons that we haven’t set an opening date yet. We worked to meet all of their revision guidelines a couple of weeks ago, but have yet to receive any official confirmation. Since we’ve already updated the plumbing plan twice due to their additions, we have chosen to hold off on finalizing the electric and plumbing connections until we get that approval too. Wish us luck for this week!
However, in better news, we are excited to let our eligible GoFundMe donors know that your stickers, t-shirts, and/or hoodies are ready for you! Please check your email in a few minutes for details on how to claim your rewards.
We are working with a new local business, Ortiz Arts Drafts and Designs, who brought these incredibly unique and quality rewards to life for you. With the cooperation of the Hispanic Business Center, they are moving into their improved location at the new Tienditas del Mercado (2886 W 25th St) on Friday, so we hope you’ll give them a visit for any of your future printing needs!
These particular designs are exclusive for people who donated to our GoFundMe campaign, but don’t worry if you missed out! We will have other designs available online very soon, and available in the cafe once we open.
We apologize that we haven’t been able to set an official opening date, but we do hope to do so as soon as possible! Our current working timeframe is a soft open for donors in early October, and opening to the public in mid-October. Of course, this is subject to change by the hurdles mentioned above.
Again, we thank you for your continued patience and enthusiasm. We love all of the calls and messages that we have been receiving, and can’t wait to open our doors soon!