Possible first discussion of topic 3/16/1902 sermon by Joseph Twichell: Twichell’s main points in favor of a parish house appeared to be that church was no longer compulsory; the church offered additional ministries and programs; and these new functions of the church required a new space in which they could be accommodated.
Charles E. Gross said that the Ladies’ Benevolent Society had been promoting the idea of a parish house “for the past ten or fifteen years”. That pushes the date for the idea back as far as 1889, which leaves a gap in the record as to any mention of the parish house before Twichell’s March 1903 sermon.
So far, I haven't found any reports or updates on the construction of the parish house between May 1903 and February 1904.
By August 1903, the cost of construction had grown so much that the building committee requested people to fulfill their pledges early. This cost overrun occurred within three months of the contracts being signed.
Charles E. Gross raised the prospect of an assistant for Twichell during the dedication ceremony, when he said that he “hoped that the church would follow the example of the South Church and provide Mr. Twichell with an assistant.” It isn’t clear that Gross’s suggestion was connected to the parish house, nor is it clear that this is the first mention of an assistant for Twichell.
Gross also mentioned the clock: he wanted the “clock in the spire kept going every week instead of every other week”. This reduced use of the clock was different from what was described when the clock was installed in 1897.