Background
Dhamma Kuñja began operating in 1991 with a capactiy of 41 students. In October 2002, the new meditation hall at Dhamma Kuñja and other infrastructure improvements were completed in Phase I of the center's master development plan. The new hall has been a wonderful improvement to the meditative atmosphere of the center. Phase I also resulted in an increase in the number of students who could attend each course from 41 up to 55. Even more students can attend in the summer when the weather is conducive to camping.
Phase II Overview
Phase II of the center's development will focus on expansion of student living quarters to match the full capacity of the meditation hall (80 students) and to make the accommodations more conducive to serious meditation. It will also include revamping student dining areas in the existing building and remodelling the kitchen. Due to cost considerations, the men's dorm will be built first, followed by the remodel of the existing building, and finally, the construction of the women's dorm (see Finances below).
New Residences
The design phase of new dormitory buildings for men and women has been completed. This process has included an updated site survey, civil engineering, permitting, developing a septic system expansion plan and designing the two dorm buildings. Images of the current design for the dorm buildings are shown below. Click on a picture for a larger image.
The new women's residence building will have 23 double-occupancy rooms accommodating up to 46 students, and the men's dorm will have 16 rooms to house as many as 32 students. These numbers reflect the typical proportion of men and women attending courses. Each building will have one handicapped- accessible unit, as well as a room to accommodate the student manager. Each room will have a full, private bathroom, a skylight for natural light, and an exterior entrance to a common, covered pathway around the building. The student rooms will be divided into 2 private cubicles separated by a storage unit with space for each student's clothing and personal items. When space is available, more established students and those with special needs may be given their own room.
Existing Building Remodel
The remodel of the existing building will include converting the largest of the existing women's dorm rooms (dorm G) into a female dining hall. The kitchen will also be expanded into part of the existing men's dining hall, and men will use the remainder of the existing men's space and the current women's space for dining. The current dormitories, both men's and women's, will also be revamped to provide better accommodations for use by female students and servers until the new female student dorm can be built.
Finances
The total cost for the dorm buildings is estimated at $1.6 million. Of this, $1 million will be for the women's dorm, which is larger and will require much more extensive utility work due to its location in the northwest corner of property. The smaller men's dorm will be able to tie into existing utility connections on the east side of the property, so will only cost about $600,000. Therefore, the trust has decided to build the men's dorm first, and then complete the remodel of the main existing building before proceeding with construction of the women's dorm.
Sufficient money has been donated to cover the expected cost of the men's dorm. However, more funds are needed for the remodel of the exisiting main building, and for building the women's dorm. The financing for the women's dorm may also include taking on a bank loan depending on donations received.
Current Status - March 4
Land clearing and other preparatory work took place last summer for the construction of the men's dorm. However, a required review of the center's water system and a much-delayed design of the septic system pushed back the issuance of the building permit from the county. Some work continued during the summer, including prefabrication of the walls and other framing components, so these are now ready to go once the permit is issued. But, the rainy season arrived before the building permit, so construction has been postponed until the coming spring. Once the permit is issued, the dorm should be completed over the course of next summer, and be put into use in the fall of 2008. Construction is expected to resume after the end of the twenty-day course on April 26th.
Donations
Those who have already taken a Vipassana course and who would like to make a donation in support of center development can contact the NVA Treasurer at treasurer@kunja.dhamma.org, or visit www.kunja.dhamma.org/os/donate.html to donate online.
Contact us:
Northwest Vipassana Center
445 Gore Rd.
Onalaska, WA 98570
Center Management:
Phone: 360-978-5434
Fax: 360-978-5433
| Registration:
Seattle: 206-508-1489
Olympia: 360-350-1985
Portland: 503-573-1232
Fax: 360-242-5988
registration@kunja.dhamma.org |
