DANFORTH – SAD 14 residents on Thursday approved a referendum request for $55,000 to make renovations and improvements to the East Grand School gymnasium to bring it into compliance with federal handicapped access laws.

The 113-80 vote will ensure that the project could be ready by the time school opens in the fall. It was the second vote by local residents on the issue. They turned the project down 83-81 in a June referendum.

The project includes new bleachers that will seat 325 people, as opposed to the 250-person capacity of the old bleachers.

After the June vote, the school board shaved $5,000 from the project by cutting out renovations for a concession area in the gymnasium. The town of Danforth, at its annual town meeting in June, also approved a request from the district for $20,000 to be used toward the cost of bleachers.

That reduced the overall SAD 14 cost for the project to $55,000.

The unofficial vote on Thursday was 84-41 in favor in Danforth and 29-39 opposed in Weston. The overall vote was a majority for the project.

“The big difference was the money Danforth approved at their annual meeting,” Superintendent William Dobbins said Friday morning. “They gave the extra dollars to go towards the project, reducing its overall cost to the school district.

“It was the reduced amount of money we needed, and the support from the townspeople of Danforth,” he said. “We are now into construction of the project.”

Dobbins said the contractor would remove the stage and bring in the new bleachers. The architect’s plans for the work already have been completed.

The K-12 East Grand School was built in the early 1960s when access for the handicapped was not an issue. Access to the stage and bleachers in the gymnasium was limited because of a 47-inch rise over the main floor. People must use stairs to get to the bleachers.

The East Grand School gymnasium is the largest facility of its kind in the area and serves about 10 towns that hold local events there.

In June, SAD 14 residents had approved a $40,000 loan to finish paying for a locker room renovation costing $76,000. The remaining $36,000 came from district funds. The money was borrowed at a 3.5 percent interest rate for three years.

The $55,000 approved Thursday will also be borrowed at an interest rate of 3.5 percent, but will be repaid over a five-year term.

Dobbins said the target date for completion of construction is the end of August.