Belgrade voters to act on new Town Office proposal Aug. 29

A new Town Office for Belgrade will be the topic of a special town meeting at 10 a.m. Aug. 29.

Voters will be asked whether they approve of the notion, whether they wish to pay for it and whether they are willing to waive a town requirement to go out to bid for projects costing more than $10,000.

Ernie Rice, chairman of the Belgrade Board of Selectpersons, Ernie Rice stands on May 19 on the proposed site of a new Town Office. The site is on Route 27 and is now a sand pit. Staff file photo by Joe Phelan

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The intent is to have the building erected by Belgrade contractors.

The project has been in the works for some time, and originally the special town meeting was envisioned for Aug. 15.

In fact, at the annual Town Meeting in March, voters approved a proposal allowing selectmen to move ahead with the planning and to site the building on the almost 12-acre plot off Town Pit Road just north of the Belgrade post office on Route 27 and not far from the site of the current Town Office.

A new, larger Town Office has been envisioned for some time, and voters have approved setting aside $50,000 or more annually to help fund the cost with about $270,000 accumulated.

The board hopes to limit the entire cost of the project to $1.1 million or less and to get permission from the voters to allow a closed bid process and limit the bidders to Belgrade taxpayers. Now, anything more than $10,000 must be legally advertised.

“By next week, we’ll have a better idea of the numbers,” said Ernie Rice, chairman of the Board of Selectpersons. “We want to make sure it’s absolutely enough.”

He also said Hammond Lumber Co. indicated it would be providing some materials at cost.

The current Town Office, a former restaurant, has space and accessibility problems.

Betty Adams — 621-5631

[email protected]

Twitter: @betadams

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