Community Building ADA

Construction - Spring 2011

Groton’s community building; a real “community” building

By H. Paul Berlejung

Article and associated pictures reprinted with permission from "The Bridge Weekly" August 11th, 2011 edition

Groton. Around 3:30 pm on Sunday, July 17, 2011 you couldn’t find a happier man in Groton than Peter Lyon. Lyon is the town resident leading the efforts that have made all the changes taking place at the Groton community building. Lyon was in high spirits because a team he assembled had spent the previous nine hours digging and hauling out over 70 truckloads of rock and dirt from behind the building.

Lyon said, “This is another example of the Groton community, its residents, coming together to make things happen.” Lyon added all of the day’s work was unpaid/volunteer labor, would enhance the drainage around the building, and will improve the parking for handicapped visitors. In addition, Lyon was proud the only cost to the town’s taxpayers was the fuel for the two town dump trucks.

Milt Lamberton, the town’s First Constable, arrived early to establish the proper traffic control along route 302. John Lynch, the project manager, was in charge of the entire operation. Terry Dana and Matt Puffer, using their own, personal excavators, kept three dump trucks hauling the loads to the old town land fill. Driving a town-owned truck was Fred Grant, another town truck was driven by Groton volunteer fire department President Frank Lapham, and select board chair Tristan Vaughan drove a third truck donated by HERV Transport (Ahren Hervey) of Newbury.

At the land fill, Herbie Hatch, with his personal owned, front end loader, spread the fill. In fact, Hatch was at the old land fill on Thursday, July 14 preparing the site for receiving all of the rock and dirt from behind the building. Finishing off the job are bales of hay furnished by dairy farmers Martha and Rusty Crown to be used as mulch on the excavation site.

Last year, town employees, residents, and organizations came together to design, purchase, and install the town’s logo on town buildings and vehicles. Again, with little or no cost to the town because the work was done with town volunteers. Then, over about a one year period, a team of residents began applied for and received more than $110,000 in grants for three ADA compliant toilets. And again, there were no direct administrative costs to the town for drafting or the administration of the grants. Two of the toilet facilities are in and addition built on the back of the gymnasium. The toilet facility in the office portion of the building was torn out and completely rebuilt to make it ADA compliant. The addition, as well as the three new toilet facilities, should be completed this month.

Kitty Diggins, chair of the town’s building committee, has been working with Yankee Electric and Northeast Electric to exchange the building’s old lighting fixtures with more efficient ones. Diggins has received $4,292 from Efficiency Vermont for the project to go along with the town’s $1,600 appropriation. Diggins estimates the upgrades will save the town about $700 a year, which makes the upgrades pay for themselves in a little more than two years.

What’s up next with the building? Short term, on the outside, a new well, and paving and marking the new ADA compliant park spaces. In the gymnasium, work on the basketball court, stage, and interior lighting are planned as well.

What’s up long term? Building committee members are developing a priority list of projects. Diggins, who’s also a Lister, said: “We realize everything can’t be done at once; therefore, we’re setting up a 10 year plan to allow us to budget projects that need to be done and the taxpayers can afford.” Diggins wants the priority list to be a community effort too, inviting residents to stop by and fill out a priority list.  “We want your ideas. This is everyone's building,” Diggins said.
 

                                   GrotonVT Home