March 29, 2024
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Expansion plans focus of Eddington agendas

EDDINGTON – Residents at the annual town meeting in March endorsed going forward with plans to construct a new addition to the town hall, and town leaders are now ready to present preliminary designs for the planned expansion.

Selectmen on Tuesday set the dates for two special selectmen’s meetings to discuss details of the addition with residents, and a special town meeting date in August for voters to decide on the estimated $950,000 project.

“We’re not looking for anything fancy, just something that meets the needs of the town,” Town Manager Russell Smith said after the meeting.

Town leaders have been discussing expanding the municipal building, which the town and Fire Department have shared for 32 years, for more than five years to add room for the fire department and a conference room for meetings.

“We’re hurting for space,” Selectman Charles “Chip” Grover Jr. said after the meeting.

Plans call for an added structure on both the right and left sides of the current 3,500-square-foot municipal building that would add a total of 6,500 square feet of new space.

For the Fire Department, a three-bay expansion measuring 52 feet by 52 feet is planned for the right side of the current building, which will be renovated into office space, a laundry, and bunk rooms for the department, while retaining the existing bays for the brush truck and rescue vehicle.

The left side addition, 52 feet by 73 feet, would add a meeting room, offices for the town manager, assessor and treasurer, a small kitchenette, and a vault room for records.

The expansion would also solve Americans with Disabilities Act and other code violations with the building, Selectman Donn Goodwin said after the meeting.

“It will [create] a handicap-accessible entrance and a better environment for the people coming in,” he said.

The projected debt service for the $950,000 project runs between $62,000 annually for a 30-year repayment plan and $76,000 annually for a 20-year loan term.

Good news for residents is that there are several items in this year’s budget that have or will expire at the end of the year, which will free up funds to apply toward the new debt service, if approved by residents, Russell said.

“We have roughly $63,000 to put towards payment,” he said, adding, “I don’t want to see taxes increase either.”

The expansion design plans, created by A.E. Hodsdon of Waterville, are on display at the town hall.

The first special selectmen’s meeting set aside to discuss the expansion is July 18 and the second is Aug. 1. The special town meeting is scheduled for Aug. 15. All three meetings will be held at the town hall.


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