Committee Membership

The building committee is comprised of monastics, lay supporters, and contracted professional help. Meetings are held every two to three weeks during the building season and about every four to six weeks over the rainy season. Co-abbots Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Amaro attend as their presence permits. Ajahn Sudanto bears the major responsibility for the whole community as resident project supervisor and facilitator. Both Tan Karunadhammo and Tan Satimanto have served as committee secretary. Lay members have been Debbie Stamp, Larry Restel, Peter Mayland, Hugh MacMillan, and Rick Williams. Peter has served with distinction as committee chair for the past two to three years. As of this spring Hugh has assumed chair duties, which include organizing and running meetings, as well as assisting Ajahn Sudanto.
In 2003 a project manager, local builder Wayne Bashore, was added. He has been invaluable in keeping our focus on key issues and helping with cost controls. In 2004 an on-going architect, Helen Degenhardt of Berkeley, and a builder, Bob Madlem of Redwood Valley, were chosen to develop future projects. The teamwork of the committee has improved enormously over the years. Unquestionably, the additions of Ajahn Sudanto, Wayne, Helen, and Bob have proven the greatest benefit in realizing the building plans for the monastery.

2005 Building Projects

In early 2006 Bob Madlem’s crews completed construction of the monks’ office building and, next door, the public restroom building. This project, designed in 2004 and begun in 2005, was a couple of months late starting and hence finishing, but it was completed on budget at $380,000. It was by far the biggest project to date and the first one to be completed on budget. The monks’ office building has three principal spaces: the abbots’ office with lavatory, a monks’ office, and a Sanghapala office. All are well-equipped with necessary computers and electronic communications. Following the winter retreat, the monastery offices were moved into the new building, and the community is now able to perform its extensive communication duties with efficiency and gratitude. The original ranch house now houses a greatly improved and expanded kitchen.

2006 Building Projects

Completion of the monks’ office building marked the official end of the first phase of the four-phase Abhayagiri Monastery development project. Completion of this milestone enables the monastic community to grow beyond the resident limit of thirteen members that we agreed to in the application for our Use Permit with Mendocino County. Now those patiently waiting for monastic training can begin to be accommodated. With the limited funds available for new construction in 2006, the priority has been to increase the housing available for the monastic community. By the end of the second phase of development, the community resident population will be permitted to reach twenty-three. This phase, which is now just beginning, will include the construction of a monks’ utility building up in the forest, additional monastic kutis, and the reception hall in the cloister.
During the summer of 2006, two elders’ kutis have been constructed for Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Amaro. Both are on schedule and under budget at $72,000 each, with the site preparations, hauling of all construction materials in and debris out, and painting and finishing being done by monks, upasikas, and visiting guests. Two additional kutis for other monastics have been constructed nearby for $22,000 each. To save costs of about $7,000 on each, these were begun by Bob Madlem’s crews but completed by monks working under the supervision of Bob’s lead carpenters and Ajahn Sudanto.
In addition, new solar power-generating arrays have been installed to provide economical electric power for the monastery. The two arrays have been made possible by a gift for that purpose and greatly aided by the supplier, Richard Jordan, who is providing his services and the arrays at cost as his way of supporting the community. One array is installed in the upper forest to provide power remote from the PG&E grid for kutis, monastic support facilities, and, eventually, the main Dhamma Hall, when constructed. The second array is installed on roofs of the cloister buildings and connected to the grid to provide most of the power for the cloister and to use the excess to offset the cost of electrical usage during times when solar power is unavailable.
Late this summer a landslide at Casa Serena was repaired by Heath Garman, the grading and road maintenance contractor, at a cost of $32,000.

Future Projects

Funds for new building projects have been depleted. The entire community will benefit from a respite after their untiring efforts over these past two years. Therefore, the building committee has decided to devote 2007 to reviewing and revising existing plans for future buildings, fleshing out those plans in greater design and cost detail, and establishing the order of priority for future facilities. It is our hope that this effort will prepare us for a timely start at the very beginning of the next major building season, probably in 2008 or 2009.

—Hugh MacMillan, for the committee