Clairemont Lutheran Church Cross
On Sunday, January 31, 2016, a windstorm blew through San Diego County, it knocked down power lines, took out trees, fences, roofs and structures were damaged.
The Clairemont Lutheran Church at the crossroads of Clairemont Mesa Blvd. and Kleefeld Avenue had a devastating loss as well. The Church and Congregation showed up the following Sunday to see the cross that had stood at the pinnacle of the worship center’s façade, had toppled in the wind. The stainless steel wrapped symbol had been experiencing hidden rust and damage for years, although undetected because of the stainless cladding. The wind basically was the last straw, tipping the top of the cross over, just under the shoulders of the cross structure.
Tim Valine Construction, Inc. removed the dangerous hanging remnant from over 90 feet above the Church. Through further investigation by the structural engineers and architects, it was determined that the cross must be replaced. The cross that has towered above the Clairemont community and Clairemont Lutheran Church for over 50 years was now just a rusty steel post.
On August 24, 2016, through permit and planning work with the City of San Diego, the design professionals and the general contractor and his steel fabricator, Clark Steel, replaced the large rusty post with a new beautiful cross to hopefully last 100 years or more. The cross is to remain the same beautiful symbol reaching high above Clairemont, as it has for the last 50 years. Pastor John and his congregation will be happy to have their beloved symbol once again reaching to the heavens as it has for a generation before.
The annual Church Picnic was held the following Sunday where Pastor John officially welcomed the new structure and dedicated the cross for the congregation to enjoy throughout time. After working with the San Diego Building Department through the inspection process and the special inspectors’ paperwork, a final inspection was approved and signed off. The Church had one last request of TVCI, regarding indirect lighting of the new cross.
They wanted the cross to shine at night, an attempt to utilize indirect solar type collectors and led fixtures did not quite give the desired effect, so the contractor broke out the big guns. After speaking to the experts at RAB Lighting, we determined a commercial grade LED spot light that could shine from the ground up would be the answer. This light is 300 Watts, over 30,000 Lumens, let’s just say it’s got the power to do the job. You can now see the cross from all over Clairemont, maybe further.
Tim Valine Construction was pleased and very proud to have worked on such an important icon in the neighborhood and for the Church community.
