Repairs on the Horizon

The Amherst Town Hall roof and part of the police station may need to be repaired due to recently discovered structural issues.

DPW Director Bruce Berry brought up these problems at this week’s Select Board meeting. He told the board that he had noticed shingles on the roof beginning to curl.

Also, Berry said that after further investigation he found the beams underneath the roof were rotted.

He does not yet have have an estimate for the cost to repair and replace the beams, but is currently researching individuals who will be able to make the repairs while maintaining the buildings historic integrity.

Select Board Vice Chair Bruce Bowler suggested at the meeting that these costs be put off and placed into a warrant article for next year.

Berry said that work on the roof could be put off until next year, but it would have to be done eventually. Berry also mentioned that the ramp into the town hall is not holding up as well.

Select Board Chair James O'Mara said that having voters approve a building reserve towards the repair costs could be an option. 

Select Board member Dwight Brew said that he would like the town to uncover all of the problems with its infrastructure so it can be addressed accordingly.

“If we were planning on putting it off and looking for a warrant, we should spend the time between now and then trying to uncover what issues there actually are,” he said.

Berry said that he believes the sheet metal between a structural beam in the police station and the concrete was also rotting. The beam goes through the Sally Port, which is used to securely transport criminals into the police station.

This issue needs to be addressed immediately and Berry already has a structural engineer scheduled to X-ray the area around the beam and see if it is safe to continue using the second floor entrance that lies above the EMS facility.

If any issues are uncovered, Berry said that they would have to work on it as soon as possible, since it would be unsafe to drive cruisers into that entrance.

“We want to make sure it is safe,” said Berry in a phone interview on Wednesday. “We want to take a proactive rather than reactive approach.”

Berry said that there are other infrastructure issues on the horizon and he is currently researching in order to get specifics on what needs to be done.