Construction Under Way To Replace East Granby Transfer Station Shed

Two months after a shed at the East Granby transfer station burned down, work has begun to replace the structure. 

“It’s being rebuilt as we speak,” Public Works Supervisor Ed Hubbard said on Monday. “It started this week.”

Public works crews discovered that the shed had burned down on Thursday, Jan. 13 while clearing the transfer station road of snow. The day before a blizzard ripped through the state leaving several inches of snow. 

The shed housed an office and all of the controls for the compactor.

Hubbard said the building is framed, and the roof will be put on during the next couple of weeks. 

Insurance is covering the construction of the new shed, which will be the same structure as before, Hubbard said. 

“There was no foul play,” Hubbard said. “That was ruled out. It was probably a power surge.”

First Selectman Jim Hayden said the cost is upwards of $10,000 for the replacement. 

“Right now, it’s between $10,000 and $11,000,” Hayden said.

Back in January, the Board of Selectmen discussed including the shed in their application for federal relief related to the blizzard because the fire likely occurred during the storm. The deductible and the history of the claim could have been avoided, however Hayden said it was "not an allowable claim" due to the fact it could be covered by insurance. 

In addition to the loss of the shed, the use of the trash compactor was also suspended back in January. Residents have been disposing their garbage in a small dumpster near the compactor. The garbage is then compacted by a garbage truck.

Although Hubbard said it doesn’t appear that the compactor sustained any major damage, he said they are still in the process of inspecting it and evaluating the damage. 

Hubbard said it is fortunate that services were not interrupted as a result of the fire.

“It hasn’t interrupted any of our service, just how we do our service,” Hubbard said. “We didn’t lose any time. The RCC didn’t have to be closed.”

Hubbard said it will still take several weeks before the shed is completely up and running, but progress is being made. Once the building is complete, Hubbard said the next step will be for the electrical work to be completed. 

The transfer station’s normal hours are Tuesdays and Saturdays from 7 a.m. - 3 p.m.