Town employees have rebuilt the town salt shed, after the previous building was damaged by high winds and had to be taken down.
Town Administrator Nick Germain said the shed had been rebuilt with materials already owned by the town for a minimal cost, and said it is intended to be a permanent solution.
“We have some very good public works people, who were able to create at the very least a mid-term solution, and it seems to be working well so far,” Germain said. “It’s back up and was done with what was already available on-site.”
Germain said the structure is very simple, and just acts as a cover for the town’s salt supply to protect it from the weather. He said the town is satisfied with the work of the public works department, and won’t look into purchasing a new building unless other problems arise. However, he said, the need to address the salt shed is only one of the issues that must be addressed at the town’s garage and highway barn.
“Obviously, when things are falling down in storm conditions, that tells us that there really needs to be some facility improvements addressed,” Germain said.
For several years, the town has been discussing the issue of the highway facilities, with the intent to eventually build new ones. This winter, the town formed a committee to have that discussion.
The committee has been meeting, and has already toured two other highway facilities in town to see what the options are. Germain said while the town may have a warrant article for the next Town Meeting, any monetary requests will be for preliminary costs, such as engineering or architectural drawings.
“This is going to be a multiyear project,” Germain said.
The town is likely to bond for the majority of the costs, Germain said, but that is one of the tasks for the committee — to determine the best course for how to pay for the new building.
Germain said the town has several issues with its current garage, including space issues for its equipment, some of which is left outside in the elements due to lack of garage space, a lack of storage and a lack of conveniences such as heating for its employees during the winter. The town employees have access to a wood stove.
“Our guys literally have to chop wood periodically to keep warm,” Germain said. “A lot of these facilities, and this one in particular, were not designed with people’s comfort in mind.”
Germain said the town committee will continue to meet periodically throughout the year, both on its own and with the Select Board, Budget Committee and Highway Department to determine the needs and the best financial approach for building a new highway garage.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.