The council also approved the final purchase negotiations for a new police cruiser, new fire department digital radios and a new plow truck.

The Sunday afternoon blessing was organized by Cox Memorial United Methodist Church.

The reconstruction of a 2,000-square-foot stretch of orad is on schedule to begin in April and be completed in October 2018, with drainage pipes to be installed next month.

The nearly $5 million project to reconstruct the road has been in the works for years and is set to begin in April and last through the middle of October 2018.

The 5,300-square-foot station at Stevens Commons continues recent investments in city infrastructure and services, and city officials hope it spurs future investments across Hallowell.

The Second Street station was built in 1828 and has a leaning wooden hose tower, basement walls and some beams damaged by fire, and other structural problems that will be fixed.

The station will be built on the Stevens Commons campus, and Mayor Mark Walker said he wants it completed before the Water Street reconstruction project begins in April.