#2 - August 2010: Building taking shape

#1 - May 2010: Construction begins

May 14, 2010

Construction begins on new
Logan Funeral Home

London's longest serving funeral home plans to hold on to that title for some time to come. Logan Funeral Home at 371 Dundas Street, downtown, officially broke ground today for construction of a brand new facility immediately next to their current premises.

London Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco-Best joined General Manager James D. Squires in a brief ceremony to kick off the eight month construction project that will see the new 10,000 square foot funeral home erected in a portion of the parking lot west of the existing building which opened on the site in 1922 - one of the first purpose built funeral homes in Ontario.

The new Logan's will offer tasteful surroundings, custom-designed to meet the unique needs of the families it serves with dignity, while providing all the comfort and convenience of a modern facility.

Reviewing plans for the new building with his partners in the business, Stephen Michalchuk and David Pizzey, Jim Squires points out that all public areas will be located on one level, making it much more suitable for the many older visitors commonly received by funeral homes. "We're very happy with the design," says Squires. "It's open and accessible with a bright spacious chapel, comfortable visitation rooms, modern reception facilities and a welcoming front desk area."

Established in 1892 by George E. Logan, the firm was purchased from the Logan family in 1962 by George A. Furtney. Mr. Furtney expanded the business by purchasing Evans Funeral Home in 1976 and his wife Joyce became president in 1988 when Mr. Furtney passed away. A funeral director and manager with the firm for many years, Mr. Squires and his partners purchased the business from Mrs. Furtney in 2002.

"When Stephen and I took ownership we laid out a five year plan to determine where the future would take us," recalls Jim Squires. "The building was at a point where we had to make some decisions and, while we considered moving, in the end we opted to stay right where we are. The downtown location has served us and the community well and we decided we had a role to play by reinvesting in the area and helping to revitalize the neighbourhood."

While site preparation has been underway for a couple of weeks, the project has really just swung into forward motion in the past few days with footings and foundations beginning to take shape. Eager to share their plans, Logan's has set up a dedicated website (www.TheNewLogans.ca) where visitors can see an artist's rendering of the new funeral home along with floor plans. A photographic record of the construction project will also be kept on the site.

As for the current Logan's, it's business as usual. Aside from relocating the front door and removing the portico the building remains unchanged. "We have been very careful to ensure that this project will not interfere with our service to families." notes Squires. "Logan's will continue to operate from its current building until the new structure is ready and then we expect a smooth transition from old to new with as little disruption as possible. If there is a short period required for the move, we have the Evans facility to assist us."

The new Logan Funeral Home is expected to open in early 2011. The present building will be demolished at that time.

August 23, 2010

New Funeral Home taking shape

Jim Squires is keeping a very close eye on the construction of his new funeral home. You can hardly blame him when you consider that his office window overlooks the building site.

The manager of Logan Funeral Home and a partner in the business, Squires has the challenging task of ensuring that it’s business as usual – with all that entails in a funeral home – while a brand new facility rises in the parking lot adjacent to the current home on Dundas Street in downtown London.

“It’s been interesting but, so far, everything has gone quite smoothly,” reports Jim. “We’ve planned carefully for this and the construction crew understand that the families we serve come first.”

The project, launched early in May, has to-date involved a lot of excavation and site preparation work along with the running of footings and foundation elements but in the past couple of weeks the shape of things to come has started to be a lot more apparent. Structural steel has been erected and walls are now going up.

“When construction starts, you know there is a lot of ground work to be done before you’re going to see much visible progress,” says Jim, “but you get anxious to see it just the same. It’s a little more exciting for us now as we begin to see something that is starting to resemble the plans we’ve all been studying for months.”

With structure going up the project is making good progress and moving forward at a brisk pace that should see the building closed in well before weather becomes an issue in the fall. While there is obviously still a long road ahead the owners and contractors are confident that the “new Logan’s” will be open, as planned, early in 2011. “We’re still not at a point where we can set a date but we’re on track and expect to be in our new home in plenty of time to watch the flowers bloom next spring.”

In an effort to keep the community up-to-date on the progress of the new facility, the firm unveiled a special website when they launched the project and Jim Squires says the response has been good. “We didn’t know how much interest there would be but the site gets a steady stream of visitors from the London area and beyond” he reports. The website which includes a live webcam feed of the work site, can be accessed from the funeral home website http://www.LoganFH.ca or directly at http://www.TheNewLogans.ca

Established in 1887 and in its current location since 1922, Logan Funeral Home was purchased from the Logan family in 1962 by George A. Furtney. Mr. Furtney expanded the business by purchasing Evans Funeral Home in 1976 and his wife Joyce became president in 1988 when Mr. Furtney passed away. A funeral director and manager with the firm for many years, Mr. Squires and his partners purchased the business from Mrs. Furtney in 2002.

May 11, 2011

Logan Funeral Home prepares for moving day

It's been anything but a dull year for Jim Squires and the staff of Logan Funeral Home on Dundas Street in downtown London. Almost exactly one year to the day since crews began preparing the site for construction of the new Logan Funeral Home, Squires and his colleagues are in midst of preparations to move into their brand new 10,000 square foot facility.

While building something new is always an exciting process, building it 18 inches from your current address can introduce a whole new level of excitement. You see, the new funeral home, now receiving finishing touches, has been erected in the parking lot of the current building which has continued to serve families throughout the process without interruption. The footprints of the two structures actually even overlap when you consider that the porte-cochère attached to the current building had to be removed before construction. And while the new funeral home will also have a covered area at the entrance for staying out of the weather while leaving a vehicle, it won't be put in place until the retired building is demolished.

It's been a challenge some days acknowledges Squires, Logan's general manager and one of the business's owners. "It required a great deal of planning to ensure that construction moved along but that our families weren't disturbed, but it all worked out very well."

Even more elaborate plans are now being rolled out as the transition period begins. "We are doing absolutely everything possible to minimize the disruption of the move," says Squires. "We will move ourselves and our offices virtually overnight so our work can continue and people can reach us without interruption. The challenges we face concern public access to the building as the existing structure is dismantled." A wrecking ball, he points out, is pretty much out of the question with all those new windows just literally inches away. "It will take a bit of time but we're working closely with our contractors and all the local authorities to achieve all the efficiency we can and we will get our doors open to the public as soon as it's safe to do so."

During the short period of transition Logan's staff will continue to serve families as always. The firm's second location, Evan's Funeral Home on Hamilton Road, is available as a back-up and staff are prepared to make whatever arrangements are required to meet the needs of families.

"We would naturally be happier if we could simply close one door and open another," acknowledges Jim Squires, "and, in fact, that's exactly how it will seem to most people. But a few days of working around some minor obstacles is the price we're paying to keep Logan's right here, downtown, where our customers want us to stay."

The new Logan's Funeral Home will feature several spacious parlours, fully equipped reception space and a large bright chapel - complete floor plans can be seen at www. TheNewLogans.ca.

Until the move, Logan's continues to offer full service from their existing facility; a moving date is expected to be announced soon. An official grand opening and public tours of the new building are being planned for later in the year.