Chapter 15 - The Expansion Proposal
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Winter settled over Connecticut, blanketing the farmhouse in thick, white snow. Inside the community studio, the radiators hissed loudly as Grace pinned a large architectural rendering to the corkboard.
Nathan, Melissa, and two board members of the Open Door Project sat around the drafting table.
“The abandoned lot directly behind the current shelter just went into foreclosure,” Grace explained, tapping the map. “It’s zoned for mixed-use residential. If we buy it now, we can build a second wing. Eight more apartments, a dedicated job-training center, and a community garden.”
“It’s a beautiful design, Grace,” Melissa said, adjusting her glasses. “But the bank is asking for eight hundred thousand dollars for the lot alone. Construction will cost another two million. We don’t have that in the nonprofit’s operating fund.”
“We can apply for state grants,” Grace argued.
“Grants take a year to process,” a board member added. “If we don’t buy the lot in the next thirty days, a commercial developer will swoop in and put up a strip mall.”
Nathan stared at the map. He saw the way Grace’s eyes lit up when she talked about the job-training center. He knew how much she wanted this space for women who were trying to rebuild their lives from scratch.
“We don’t have time for grants,” Nathan said quietly.
“Then we have to let it go,” Grace said, her shoulders slumping slightly. “We can’t leverage the current building. I won’t put the residents at risk with a mortgage we can’t afford.”
“I completely agree,” Nathan said. He stood up, buttoning his jacket. “Let me make a few calls.”
“Nathan, what are you doing?” Grace asked. “We agreed no taking on private debt for the project.”
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“I’m not taking on debt,” he said, looking at her with a calm, steady gaze. “I’m just going to look into an old file.”
He walked out of the studio, leaving Grace and Melissa exchanging a puzzled look. Nathan knew exactly where the money could come from, but it required him to open a door to his past he had sworn to keep shut.
