Selectmen handle building issues

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    GUILFORD — The Guilford Board of Selectmen had a rather light to-do list at their Nov. 4 meeting, but made a few decisions about some town-owned property.
    The board received two bids to replace the roof on the C.H. Lightbody Medical Center, a building owned by the municipality and leased to Mayo Regional Hospital.

    But the estimates gave the board some “sticker shock,” Town Manager Tom Goulette said. “They were over $25,000 for a complete replacement. But that’s not really necessary.”
    Goulette said that the major problem with the structure is heat loss which causes considerable ice build-up, not the condition of the roof itself. “Now we’re looking at rearranging some insulation and changing the ventilation system to prevent ice from forming,” he said. “That should solve the problem.”
    The office complex is named after the late Charles “Harry” Lightbody, a family doctor who served the community for decades from his home office.
    Community Fitness Center, which leases space in the former Guilford Elementary School building, sent an inquiry to the board about replacing some flooring in the auditorium and the future of the rooms currently being used by the Community Partners Food Bank.
    Goulette said that technically, the auditorium — which doubles as a gym — isn’t part of the Community Fitness lease agreement “although they use it quite often.” So the floor replacement was taken under advisement by the board, pending further study.
    The food pantry is in the process of moving into its new headquarters at the former Northwoods Store on the Greenville Road, but is still using the space at the former school. “They’ve moved some freezers up to the new place, but they still have a long way to go before they’re completely out,” Goulette said.
    Although the town donates the space for the food pantry, the town manager said that any future tenant would be paying rent. If one of the tenants already in the building wanted to expand, their rent would be adjusted to reflect the additional space, he said.
    Currently the School Administrative District 4 superintendent’s office and the Learning 4 Life program are in the building along with Community Fitness.
    Goulette also announced that paving on the west end of Butter Street and the Salmon Stream Hill section of Wharff Road have been completed. “So far, we’ve had no major complaints of speeders which is usually common after new pavement is placed,” he said.
    The $1.7 million project to replace the deck on the Guilford Memorial Bridge has received full funding from the Maine DOT and the job will be advertised in early 2015. The contract calls for keeping one lane open with traffic signals, Goulette said. “There will be all new railings, sidewalks and even some lights after many years of darkness,” he added.
    Town officials have been pressing MDOT to compete the renovation before 2016, when Guilford celebrates its bicentennial.
    The next regularly-scheduled board of selectmen’s meeting is Tuesday, Dec. 2 at 6:30 p.m.