Construction on the Francestown Town Hall and Academy building will begin early next week.
Select board members said they will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the start of the long-awaited project on Monday, May 8.
Michele Ferencsik, chair of the Francestown Heritage Commission, said work on the building will begin shortly thereafter.
“It’s very exciting,” she said. “And we really appreciate so many people who have supported this project. We are a little town and everyone stood up to make this happen.”
The Francestown Town Common, which includes the Town Hall, was honored by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior with placement on the National Register of Historic Places last year. The Common is significant for its architecture, and its role in government, education, and commerce over the course of history.
Ferencsik said the Town Hall has been closed for a number of years now due to structural concerns.
“The building had failed,” she said about the situation.
Everything in the building, she said, needed to be brought up to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA. Ferencsik said the structure also needs new bathrooms, roofing, windows, and floors, and its fire-suppression system needs a major overhaul.
“It’s an extensive rehabilitation,” Ferencsik said.
The vast majority of fundraising for the $1 million project has been completed, with help from a New Hampshire Land and Community Heritage Investment Program, or LCHIP, grant, private donors, and town funds.
Ferencsik said the work will likely be completed in the fall, at which point an open house will be held.
Abby Kessler can be reached at 924-7172, ext. 234 or akessler@ledgertranscript.com.