Parish General Manager, Jim Tracy has received a munber of inquiries in response to his article published in Life last week on the "Cost of Being Here." Some, though they trust Jim Tracy's business acumen, also expressed disbelief in the cost of maintaining our presence in Ashburn.

Last week, Jim Tracy reported that the cost of "being here," in mortgage, utilities and maintenance costs, is currently $376,000 - 14 times the cost that it was in 1998.

"Your information about the cost of 'being here' just has to be wrong. It can't possibly cost that much." In response to those inquiries, Jim Tracy reviewed the data.

Mortgage

The Parish paid $20,100 on the mortgage in 1998. By the end of 2007, the parish will have paid $212,000. This includes paying down the principal on the mortgage as well as the monthly interest.

That payment is almost 11 times in 2007 what is had been in 1998. The reason for the increase is the additional $2 million in mortgages the parish has assumed since 1998.

The increased mortgage represents the largest added cost of "being here." But many other expenses contribute to the increase as well. These costs must also be covered to keep the church ready for worship on Sundays and other ministries throughout the week.

Utilities

In 1998 the Parish paid $2,300 for propane to heat about 46,500 cubic feet of building space. That space consisted only of Mercer Hall, where worshippers met on Sunday, and the Boslaugh office building.

By the end of 2007 the Parish will have paid $15,000 to heat 162,700 cubic feet of building space. The move from Mercer Hall to the church quadrupled the space that must be made comfortable. This is a six-fold increase over utility costs in 1998. Added to this burden is the rise in the price of gas - something every homeowner has experienced.

Lawn Care

In 1998 several parishioners volunteered to bring their lawn mowers from home every week to cut the grass.

With only 2 1/2 acres of lawn it was a job easily accomplished by willing hands. Thus, there was no cost of grass cutting to the Parish in 1998.

With the expansion of our campus, there are now 8 1/2 acres to be maintained, far beyond the capacity of volunteers, even those willing to try to squeeze in what time they may have left after they have covered their responsibilities with work and family. In 2007, the Vestry budgeted $4,740 just to cut the grass.

Expenses vs. Income

With the increase in parish expenses since 1998, how have parishioners responded to the need to support the cost of just "being here"? What about parish income? Has it kept pace?

In the next article in this series, Jim Tracy will provide an analysis of our parish income.