In knuckling down to its first capital expenditures project in 20 years – the work of building a new central fire and rescue station – Whitefield faces decisions ranging from what siding to install to how much planning board review is needed.
Last week, Board of Selectmen chairman Steve McCormick and member Sue McKeen attended the building committee’s first meeting since annual March town meeting when voters approved the half-million-dollar project. McCormick reported Monday he has to double-check rules the lender, USDA Rural Development, has for contractors in terms of bonding.
The work is going out to bid soon.
McCormick said he believes the federal loan requires that contractors be bonded and that the agency “will review everything.”
The 4800 square foot building need not be made of steel if the contractor proposes to do a stick-built structure, McCormick said.
Some design features, reviewed by the state fire marshal, have been tweaked. The meeting room has been slightly enlarged and there will be no cookstove or oven because a costly ventilation system would be required. There was also discussion about illuminating only the station rather than the entire site, which adjoins the town office at the north end of Townhouse Road.
Building committee members are preparing preliminary plans to take to the April planning board meeting.
Board chairman Doug Baston said, “The only time something comes before us is when it’s shoreland zoning.” He added that the panel also approves subdivisions, but not the buildings. Again, the CEO handles the building permit applicants must acquire.
Trask said vinyl siding was chosen because “it’s maintenance free. We don’t need to worry about it.” Clapboards need to be painted and stained, he said, and shingles would have to be replaced later on. “We in Alna are painting and taking care of (many) old buildings, and that’s causing heartache,” he said.
The fire department hired general contractor Catalano’s Construction of Thomaston, a decision Trask looks back on with no regret. (The Massachusetts-based company was founded in 1988.) Inside the wooden structure that Catalano’s supplied, eight inches of insulation were installed in the walls and extra insulation in the ceiling.
Trask said the addition was pre-built elsewhere and assembled on site. “They were in charge of everything. We thought of hiring somebody to do the dirt, a carpenter to do the carpentry but come to find out, it was just as cheap to hire one guy (Catalano’s) and let him hire whoever he wanted.”
Subcontractors included a Bristol plumbing company, a Damariscotta electrician, and Alna’s own Barry Miete for the concrete work.
“We didn’t ask Catalano to hire those guys. (The company) called around,” Trask said.
At no cost, Trask himself, along with Paul Ouellette and Jim Bruce, handled the essential role of project overseer, or clerk of the works. “We went in all the time and inspected.”
By meeting regularly with the contractor to discuss what had happened that week and what would be happening the next week, “nobody got mad or upset. All issues were dealt with on a week-to-week basis,” the fire chief said. In addition, if an unexpected situation not covered by the contract cropped up – such as a ledge that needed blasting – “two of us had the power to make decisions on the spot, to say ‘keep going,'” Trask stated.
There was also contingency money available for unanticipated costs. The project ended up costing $25,000 more than originally planned, Trask said. The kitchen was enlarged, a generator was added, and the ventilation system for the two gas stoves cost $8000.
Whitefield’s building committee meets Thurs., April 15 at 7 p.m. and every two weeks thereafter.
