[Lynn]

Wow. Haven't posted on this thread since March 15. Hmmmm. In my defense, we have gotten two of the kids married (both receptions at our home) and been busy with other projects. I am almost done converting the driveline on my 49 Studebaker Truck to Chevy Truck status. Put a 350 low rpm high torque roller cam motor (thanks Eric for the cam recommendation)and 4L60E electronic OD trans in the 68 El Camino, and Sherri's CL600 keeps me busy because of all the gizmos that came on it. No way I would drive that car if I had to actually pay someone to work on it. BTW, I replaced her little red MRoadster (I sold it to a friend when we got the MB) with another one, so will be selling the CL600, which is a magnificent machine, assuming you can work on it.... 543 HP (same TTV12 as the Maybach) and all the comfort you can imagine.

We have changed directions. I said we were rehabbing part of the inside of the house. We did re-do the kitchen and add a bar area to the upstairs game room. We also ended up doing a lot of work to the outside. Mostly done now. I don't have pics here at the office, but I will try and post some pics and a good update over the weekend.

Also, that little 21 x 22 building in the first post is NOT going to be my shop after all. We have divided it into 4 sections, two for general storage, one for auto parts and one fourth for Sherri's garden shed. Do I have a great wife or what?

The building next door to us is the County Red Cross headquarters. About 1600 feet of space, cinder block construction from the 50's with an addition and updating about 12 years ago. It is all handicap accessible (more on that later). When we heard they were selling the building, I put an offer in right away. I didn't want a tattoo parlor (or worse) going in next door. THEN, I did some research to find who owned the two vacant lots on the other side of the Red Cross building. We ended up purchasing the building and the two vacant lots. We offered, and the Red Cross accepted, to let them stay for a year rent free. Those empty lots used to be the Sinclair Station (Dewberry Sinclair). I found evidence of old monitoring wells for in ground tanks. I was able to finagle a RELEASE from the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (the governing body for in ground tank issues) which means I cannot be held liable privately or publicly for any old leakage. They were small tanks, and have been removed.

Not sure what we are going to do with the Red Cross building when they move out. One reason we bought it is because it is handicap accessible. My Mom is 87 and may need some help in the next few years. She can't move in with us because all our living is upstairs and she has a hard time negotiating the stairs. So, the Red Cross is a possibility. Just have to wait and see.

So... we get to build a shop from scratch, which means I need to raise some scratch. I refuse to borrow money at this point in my life. We are very close to being able to break ground on a brand new shop that will look like a Sinclair station. My preliminary drawings are for 32 x 40. I have room to go bigger, but I REALLY want the shop to be only a shop and not storage. I have been blessed with plenty of storage space for spare engines, trannies etc. I am afraid if I make the shop too big, I will be tempted to drag home the "find of the day" every time I see another POS that can be saved. The only thing that MIGHT change that is if I decide I want a paint booth area. I don't think I do, even for priming and prep. Even though the Z/28 came out 10x better than I ever thought I could make a black car look, I really don't enjoy paint work that much. Plan to farm it out.
I will post some pics of my preliminary floor plans. I already have a good used Aamco two post 12,000 lb. lift, so can plan accordingly.

I have zero lot line requirements (one advantage to living in the central business historic district) but will have to jump through additional hoops to get everything approved (one disadvantage to living in the historic district). I am however, now serving on the Historic Preservation Commission, but will have to abstain from voting on my own application. I have met informally on the site with the current building inspector, and he didn't see any issues with what I am wanting to do

We have tried to find old pics of Dewberry Sinclair, but no luck yet. I believe it was built in the 30's or 40's and know it was still standing early 70's. I have an aerial pic from the 70's, but it had already been converted from a service station to something else by then.