Lincoln officials examine costs to improve public works garage

LINCOLN – The town Public Works Department garage will undergo extensive renovation or be replaced once Town Manager Glenn Aho hunts down some figures, Town Councilor Bruce Albert said Monday.

The council directed Aho at its meeting last week to determine how much it would cost to re-roof and re-skin the garage and how much it would cost to replace it entirely, Albert said.

“I am more for the re-skinning because the structural steel itself is fine,” he said Monday. “I think that would be cheaper. We need to do something. The roof does leak. We want to fix it.”

Re-skinning the building would involve reducing it to its most basic steel beam components, insulating it and replacing the exterior walls. Building it anew would involve replacing the steel beams.

Councilors agreed that the building needs renovation or replacement and most seemed prepared to go with Albert’s recommendation last week but Councilor Thora House said she wanted to see the costs involved with either plan before committing. Councilors agreed.

Built more than 20 years ago, the garage has a leaky roof, its sides bleed heat because of a lack of insulation and the garage lacks work space, a lunch area for workers, and storage space, Aho and Albert said. It also could use a new hydraulic system.

Albert said extending the roof eight to 10 feet along one side of the garage would create more space.

The garage is one of several town buildings councilors are considering replacing or building. They also are considering building the town’s first recreation and community center off Route 6 and relocating the town office to empty space off Main Street and West Broadway where the former mall was destroyed by fire.

No plans have been voted on, nor have any timelines been set.