Politics & Government
Village Hall Elevator Installation to Begin in Fall
Elevator will allow the second and third floors of the building to be used again.
A long-discussed elevator for Southampton Village Hall is expected to become a reality this fall, when construction begins.
The new elevator will enable the village to begin utilizing the second and third floors of the building again, both of which have sat gutted and empty for more than 10 years. One floor is slated to become the new home of the village Building Department, while the other may be the future home of the WPPB 88.3 FM public radio offices.
The total cost of the project is $120,000. The Village Board voted June 13 to accept a bid from JAID Construction, of Richmond Hill, to build the elevator shaft for $65,000, and from All-Ways Elevator, of Bohemia, to install the elevator for $55,000. The village is financing the project through a bond, which will be repaid over time.
Village Administrator Stephen Funsch said that rather than losing parking spaces during the busy summer season, the village has opted to hold off on starting the work until the fall. He said that when work begins, concrete equipment and a dumpster will likely take up parking spaces. The job will take about three months, he said.
The village is expected to pay for renovations to accommodate the Building Department, and the radio station may foot the bill for their anticipated new offices.
Though renovating a floor will have an upfront cost to the village, in the long run the move may save money because the village can close the Building Department's $50,000-per-year rented space on Hill Street.
The village Police Department occupied the second floor until 2002, when it moved into a brand new facility on Windmill Lane. The Village Board has floated the idea in the past of selling Village Hall and using the proceeds to build a new facility next to the police station, but many residents spoke out against the plan, wanting to keep Village Hall at the heart of the village on Main Street.
In the past, the village commissioned renderings of an extension off the back of the building to accommodate an elevator, but the plan was dropped due to the great expense.
