The roofs on five village-owned buildings need significant repair or total replacement, according to a consultant’s report.
The village had planned to spend $92,000 for roof work in 2007, but then used that money to cover bicentennial celebration bills after a state member-item grant to fund the bicentennial was canceled late in the year.
Based on the new report, the village will now ask for another state legislative grant, this time for the roof repairs. “We’ll be asking Sen. [Joseph] Bruno,” said Mayor John P. Romano.
The roofs on the village hall and the Eagle-Matt Lee firehouse are leaking to the point that they should be replaced in the near future, while the other roofs also need work, Romano said.
The village recently paid Roof Scan Inc. of Stillwater $2,650 to do sophisticated testing on all the roofs to determine where they were saturated with moisture from leaks.
“The money was well worth it. We really now have an idea where the leaks are,” Romano said. “The buildings are all old and the roofs all need to be replaced, but that’s not a viable option.”
The roof at the Eagle-Matt Lee firehouse on Washington Street was already known to be water-damaged. “Absolutely, this roof needs to be replaced,” Romano said, summarizing the report.
The roof on the village hall on Front Street is about 95 percent water-damaged, according to the report. “This roof is in poor condition,” Romano said. “This roof should be removed and replaced.”
Also needing work to stop leaks, but less severely damaged, are the roofs on the police station on Bath Street, the public works garage on Charlton Street, and the Union firehouse on Milton Avenue.
The village’s plan had been to spend $92,000 on roof repairs last year. However, Gov. Eliot Spitzer in October canceled a $90,000 member-item grant given to the village for the bicentennial celebration by Assemblyman James Tedisco, R-Schenectady.
The bicentennial celebration money had already been spent in anticipation of the grant, so the village dipped into the roof replacement fund to cover the bills.
Based on the new findings, Romano said the village plans to ask Bruno, R-Brunswick, who is the state Senate majority leader, about obtaining a $75,000 grant to fix the roofs.
Also at a Village Board meeting Monday, the board awarded $149,900 in construction contracts to install an elevator at the Ballston Spa Public Library.
Funding for the two-story elevator is coming from a $62,000 state Department of Education grant and private bequests to the library.
The library, located between Milton Avenue and Low Street, has a ramp for handicapped access, but officials have realized the access could be improved.
“The elevator is going to make access a lot easier and more proactive,” Romano said.
The village awarded a $79,500 general construction contract to Bunkoff General Contractors of Latham, and a $70,400 contract to Harold R. Clune Inc. of Ballston Spa for the electrical work.
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