Celoron Finally Looks To Replace Highway Garage
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For almost two years, Celoron has been without a fully functional highway maintenance garage.
"Can't believe it's been that long. It's crazy," Mayor Scott Schrecengost said of the Aug. 8, 2021, blaze that broke out inside the steel DPW building.
While the Gifford Avenue structure itself withstood the two-alarm fire that morning, most of the village-owned equipment inside did not. And when some of that equipment was replaced -- most notably a brand new, 1-ton dump truck -- it was promptly stolen.
Schrecengost believes the village finally is on a path that includes demolishing the still-standing garage and having a new structure built in its place.
Bids for construction on a new facility are due shortly -- the second time the village has solicited bids for the project. The first time around, Schrecengost said, the costs came in at between $1.3 million and $1.5 million, which was much higher than what the village had expected.
"It wasn't so much COVID that hurt us, it's that the timing of our building burning down was when all the hurricanes hit down south," the mayor said.
Further complicating matters was Celoron's insurance provider, which felt the highway garage was not completely destroyed because it was still standing.
Schrecengost said the insurance company wanted the village to find a contractor who might be able to repair the steel structure. Though officials found a contractor from Pittsburgh who was willing to come up to Celoron and even provide an estimate, the company declined to take on the project.
"After all that, sitting on it for a year and a half, I went back to the insurance company and told them, 'Look, we're not trying to make money off this deal. I just want a garage replaced so we can get our equipment put away.' There's no reason for this."
With a slightly modified building design to keep costs down, Schrecengost believes the bids will come in lower. "Now I think we're at the point where we'll be able to afford the new garage," he said.
Once the construction bids are received, Schrecengost said the village will solicit bids to have the current highway garage demolished. He expects that process to be much smoother.
"We'll take the lowest guy and they'll get right on it and we'll get this demo'ed," he said.
Since the fire, the village has been storing some of its equipment inside the badly damaged garage; basic tasks handled by the village Department of Public Works are being completed.
However, a dilemma that may soon arise, Schrecengost noted, is what to do with the equipment once the current garage is torn down and before construction on the new facility is completed.
Concerns about keeping village-owned property safely secured is not unfounded. A new dump truck Celoron bought to replace one destroyed in the August 2021 blaze was quickly stolen, along with a chainsaw, weed wacker and gas cans.
The dump truck -- complete with drugs and paraphernalia inside -- was stopped near Barcelona Harbor by sheriff's deputies. The village eventually got the vehicle back, albeit with 350 new miles put on it.
"Every time we buy and replace equipment, somebody comes and steals all the stuff from us," Schrecengost said.