by Jan Shields
Preserve a “great old building” or construct a new energy efficient Town Hall is the question the Hoosick Town Board mulled over Monday during a workshop meeting.
Toss in two other existing buildings that could be retrofitted for a Town Hall and the choice becomes even more difficult.
After discussing choices with William L. Cottrell, an engineer with Cottrell Associates of Hoosick Falls, for more than an hour, the workshop was adjourned without the Board choosing an option or even narrowing the field.
One of the reasons was that the State has not provided the Town with a price tag for the Armory. The cost could be $1, but it also could be $100,000 or more. Town Supervisor Keith Cipperly hopes to hear back from a State representative this month so the Town can proceed.
“We’re looking at the Armory as a special thing. This is a great old building. We would hate to see it empty,” said Councilman Mark Surdam. “But I have talked to people who have called it a monstrosity that shouldn’t be hung around the necks of the taxpayers. This [decision] might have to be up to the voters.”
Cottrell presented to the Board a feasibility study which compared each of the choices by adjusting renovations in each building to offer “about the same amount of finished space and renovated to the same level of quality.” Because Weeb’s Fish Fry was the smallest of the three existing buildings about 5,800 to 6,000 square feet of renovated space was used in the estimates.
Cottrell said in the report that “each building is unique because of its location …, the age … , the type of construction and the history and usage.”
The estimates were limited to construction and renovation costs They did not include the cost of:
• acquiring the building
• asbestos abatement,
• financing costs,
• contingency costs (about 10 percent of the construction cost).
They all did include:
• handicapped accessability,
• renovated restrooms,
• flooring.
Weeb’ s Fish Fry
The building would be totally renovated yielding about 5,800 square feet at a cost of approximately $331,000, including a new roof. The existing heating system, however, could be used. The estimated cost of the building is $180,000. The cost of acquiring and renovating the building would total about $511,000.
The disadvantages include that there is no room for expansion and the location has inadequate parking.
“Are we looking at 5 years or 50 years?” asked Councilman Louis Schmigel. “Are we going to continue to be a bedroom community or are we going to grow? With the chip plant, we may see more growth.”
Patire’s Garage
This building contains 10,500 square feet, but for comparison approximately 5,800 square feet would be renovated for Town offices. A new floor plan would be created, large windows replaced on the north and west sides of the building and the roof replaced on the dome portion of the building at a renovation cost of about $322,000. Bruce Patire, who attended the workshop, said with no renovation, the cost of the building to the Town would be in the $310,000 to $315,000 range. The total cost of acquiring the building and renovating it would total about $630,000. However Patire said he would sell the building with renovations to his specs, which are not as extensive as Cottrell’s, for $374,000.
Councilmen Mark Surdam and Schmigel said they were concerned about possible contamination to the grounds since the building has been used as a repair shop and garage for generations. Another negative with the building is that the floor plan is inflexible because one area of the floor is two feet higher than the others.
It does, however, offer adequate parking and room for expansion.
The Armory
This building has about 22,000 square feet, far more than is needed by the Town. Approximately 6,000 square feet would be renovated. The interior would be remodeled. Work would include bringing the insulation rating of all walls in the renovated areas up to R-19 and the ceilings, which would be lowered, up to R-38. The cost of this renovation is estimated at $271,000.
The positives of using the armory is its room for expansion, four year old roof and the condition of the historic building.
“[It is] an extremely well-built masonry structure in excellent condition,” said Cottrell in his report.
The negatives included the cost of maintenance of the unused space and its energy inefficiency.
To address the energy issue, Cottrell recommended insulating the entire building, lowering the ceilings throughout and replacing the boiler with two “properly sized” boilers. He estimated the cost to be an extra $232,000 but would save about 60 percent of the current heating costs.
Without knowing the cost of acquiring the building, the two renovation estimates total $503,000. The addition of an elevator, if the second floor was to be used by the public, is estimated at $80,000.
New Construction
A new 6,000 square-foot pre-engineered steel building is estimated to cost about $782,000. If the building size was reduced to 5,000 square feet, the cost would be about $671,000. These prices excluded site work and the 10 percent construction contingency.
Board members commented on the energy efficiency of a new building and the lower cost of future renovations.
But Cottrell said, “Build a new steel building and in 30 years you have an old steel building. The Armory in 30 years will look much the same as it does today.”
Councilmen agreed to arrange to meet with State and political representatives about the price of the Armory and with an environmental firm to obtain an estimate on asbestos abatement for each of the three buildings before narrowing the field of the contenders. In the meantime, the current rental agreement between the Town and State for the armory ends in October.
Because of Columbus Day, the next Town Board meeting will be held at 7 pm on Tuesday, October 11.