Earl Lemieux of Whitefield Union Church and local carpenter Bob King inspected the tilting steeple of the Kings Mills house of worship Sunday.
The town’s code enforcement officer issued a correction order several weeks ago, labeling the leaning spire a “serious situation” and demanding that a solution be found. (See story The Lincoln County News issue of Oct. 29)
One of three remaining members of the congregation, deacon Lemieux said this week the condition of the bell tower, while weather beaten, “is good.” He said Sunday’s investigations indicated the leaning cone itself, which sits atop the bell tower roof, is the problem. “The base of the cone is solid. We’d have to cut a hole in it to see what is going on,” he said, and that work can be accomplished “if we could get a couple of young guys up there.”
Lemieux said he hoped to have an engineer inspect the steeple and that about $800 is left in the steeple fund. That money came mostly from community donations several years ago.
He also said if selectmen condemn the structure, “the town is liable for it.”
The church runs the Whitefield Food Pantry from its basement and serves about 60 area families, according to Lemieux.
Lemieux attended the selectmen’s meeting Monday, but declined to address the board until CEO Arthur Strout can be present.
Stephen Smith, a citizen member of the former steeple restoration committee, told selectmen he believes the building is sound other than the steeple, and that the problem is the deterioration of the bell tower roof, where the cone sits. “Once the cone is removed, you’d eliminate the danger of it coming off and it would give a group a place to start from in terms of rebuilding the belfry, which is not in bad shape. It needs work. It can be corrected.”
The steeple issue was added to next week’s agenda, Mon., Nov. 9, beginning at 7 p.m.