Here is a rendering of the proposed Barre Fire Hall that would have three bays on one side and two on the back.

BARRE – Registered voters in the town of Barre next Wednesday will determine whether the Barre Fire District has permission to borrow up to $1.4 million for a new fire hall.

Voting will be from 3 to 9 p.m. at the current fire hall. The fire district is projecting the building will add $50,000 annually to the fire tax. That money was already included in the 2014 town tax bill, which set the fire protection rate at $1.45 per $1,000 of assessed property.

The $1.4 million represents a worst-case scenario for borrowing, fire officials said. The district will seek grants for the project that would reduce the amount of debt needed for the project, said Barry Flansburg, treasurer for the fire district.

The new fire hall would replace one that has been the Barre Volunteer Fire Company’s home since 1961. That building at 4709 Oak Orchard Road was originally a schoolhouse constructed in 1910. An addition was added in 1961.

The hall currently needs repairs and a roof replacement. It is also too small for modern fire vehicles. The most recently purchased truck cost an extra $100,000 to be custom-created to fit inside the small fire hall. Flansburg said the building also has limited space for offices, storage, equipment and HVAC. The site also has limited handicapped accessibility.

The new fire hall would be north of the existing one on Route 98 on the west side of the road, almost acorss from the Barre Town Park.

The new building would be 7,300 square feet with five truck bays, three on the front and two on the back. This will allow two of the lanes to be pull-through.

The new fire hall is estimated to cost $1.55 million. The Fire District has $150,000 set aside as a capital contribution and plans to borrow the remaining $1.4 million that would be paid back over 30 years.

Fire officials have been having open houses every Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the current fire hall to take questions from the public. Fire officials will be there again this Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Flansburg said the new fire hall will not only meet the Fire Company’s needs for the next 50 years, but will also boost community pride.

“A brand-new fire hall will show Barre is a progressive community where people will want to be,” he said.

Photos by Tom Rivers – Dave Mogle, owner of D.K. Auto Body Repair in Albion, worries that a blocked off Clarendon Street bridge would hurt his business at 338 Childs St.

ALBION – David Mogle has a new mechanic starting today at D.K. Auto Body Repair in Albion. A couple months ago, Mogle added on to the business, giving the front office more room and a new look.

But now Mogle is questioning those investments. His business is at the corner of Clarendon and Childs streets. He’s right next to a bridge that could soon be closed and torn out. The street could be blocked off at the bridge.

The bridge carries 1,600 vehicles a day, and Mogle said his customers and delivery trucks account for some of that.

“This is a great street and we have good neighbors,” Mogle said. “I never envisioned they would just block it off and put up a guard rail.”

Mogle started the business at Childs Street in 1990. He was 28 then. He has grown D & K to 10 employees who do mechanical and autobody work.

The business has steadily grown, and Mogle attributes some of that to the vehicles who pass by Clarendon Street and see his shop.

“We have many dedicated customers,” Mogle said. “But I worry about getting new customers if we’re hard for them to find.”

The Clarendon Street bridge carries about 1,600 vehicles a day on the east side of the village of Albion.

Mogle said ideally his business would be on routes 31 or 98, busy and highly visible locations. But Childs and Clarendon streets has proven a good spot, and he assumed the village was working to have the bridge replaced.

But about two weeks ago that changed. New construction, design and other costs for the bridge raised the cost by about $600,000 over the budget, and that increase would have to be paid by the village. The federal and state governments committed to 95 percent of the costs when the project was about $1.5 million.  The village share jumped from about $200,000 to $775,000 with the latest projected costs.

The Village Board says that is too high for village taxpayers. The federal and state money can be used demolish the bridge and block off the street near the railroad tracks. The board hopes to have renderings of how the blocked off street will look in time for its 7 p.m. meeting on June 11.

Mogle is disappointed by the latest developments. He said his business will be hurt if the street is blocked off by the tracks. He also worries it will be dangerous for students, who he said will walk around barricades to get to and from school.

Mogle isn’t the only business owner worried. Sue Holmes purchased the Crooked Door Tavern on April 3. That business is at the corner of East State and Brown streets. The Brown Street canal bridge has been closed for about two years. Now the Clarendon Street bridge faces demolition with no replacement.

“It’s one less way for people to find a way to us,” said Holmes, who has 17 employees. “We’re already off the beaten path. We want to make it easier for people to get to us, not harder.”

Provided photo

A chicken barbecue last month raised nearly $2,000 to support the Scouting program in Albion. The Knights of Columbus Council No. 1330 in Albion has been doing the Palm Sunday chicken barbecue for many years. The Knights recently presented three $650 checks to the Cub Scout Pack, Boy Scout Troop, and Venture Scouts with funds from the event totaling $1,950. The checks were presented by Carl Laubacher (Treasurer), back left; Larry Wolfe (Council/Boy Scout Liaison), back row second from right; and Bob Ballard (Grand Knight), back right. Scout leaders Dr. Tom and Sandra Madejski accepted the donations with several scout members.

Veterans Joe Gehl, front, and Steve Coville were among the participants in today’s Memorial Day parade in Albion.

Amelia Symons, 2, of Albion holds an American flag while watching the parade with her brother Henry on Main Street in Albion.

Mark Roberts, commander of the VFW in Albion, raises the American flag with Wally Skrypnik, acting American Legion commander, during the Memorial Day service in front of the Middle School.

Gary Befus, a past commander of the American Legion in Albion, stands at attention during the Memorial Day service.

The Albion Marching Band participated in the parade that went from Main Street to East Avenue to the Middle School front lawn.

Vietnam War veteran and helicopter pilot Charlie Nesbitt addressed the crowd in front of the Middle School. Nesbitt said the holiday was a time to remember of the sacrifices of Americans, including three of his friends.

He talked about Albion native Rick Engle, one of Nesbitt’s childhood friend and Little League teammates, who died in Vietnam in 1968.

Nesbitt also served with Norm Perron, a helicopter pilot from Maryland who loved to entertain his fellow soldiers with a classical guitar. He died when his helicopter was shot down when he tried to rescue soldiers.

Another Vietnam veteran Dick Fore was exposed to Agent Orange. He was in the special forces. He worked as a professor at Genesee Community College, but would died from the effects of Agent Orange in 1993.

The soldiers all made a choice to serve, and to give their lives for their country, Nesbitt said.

Orleans County Legislator Don Allport also addressed the crowd. He urged veterans to tell and record their experiences in the military and at war.

“We don’t want it lost to history,” Allport said. “Americans need to know.”

During the Memorial Day service Albion student Martha Smith read “Flander’s Fields” and student Meredith Patterson read “The Gettysburg Address” by Abraham Lincoln.