Many residents have been keeping an eye on the progress that the North Country Career Center students have been making on the house at 23 E Main Street on the corner of Union and East Main. About 15 months ago, Newport Downtown Development purchased the property, along with the low adjoining lot behind it on Union, using a zero-interest loan from the VT Community Loan Fund. The purpose of the project is to create a hands-on learning opportunity for students in the Building Trades program at NCCC, and to build much needed housing on this site that links our designated downtown to the business district on East Main.
Each week, the students spend about 2 hours per day on the property depending on the phase of the building project. After significant training with Jeremy Broe, who directs the Building Trades program, the students have taken on almost all of the demolition work. The interior has been taken down to the studs, and all of the electrical and plumbing in the building has been removed.
NDD has applied to the State for a permit that will allow us to reconfigure the two properties. The vision is to remove much of the bank going up E Main St and replace it with a retaining wall, and then to slope the property more gently down to the adjoining lowlands to the North, which contains some protected wetland (hence the permitting process). If all goes well, we will build a new foundation where the bank is currently, and then pick up the house and spin it a quarter turn to face toward the lake. That will create enough space to build a duplex beside it – a project that we hope will also be the next “live” learning experience for the students.
You may have watched the barn being dismantled in early November. That project was carried out by Desrochers Crane Service, who cut the roof and the walls and floor into pieces, moved them onto a flatbed using a crane, and transported them up to the Learning Lab on Quarry Road for eventual re-assembly. By moving the house back away from Union St, and removing the barn from the property (which was sitting on a failing foundation), we hope to be able to work with the city to reconfigure the intersection to allow a turning lane for cars to make a left hand turn onto East Main – alleviating a congested condition that has been challenging for a long time.
The bottom line is that the progress is slow but steady, and we’re thrilled with the work that the students have done and the opportunity they’ve had to learn on the job. NDD’s partnership with North Country Career Center has been totally smooth, and we are especially grateful to Gwen Bailey-Rowe, Chris Damato, and Jeremy Broe and the two classes of Building and Trades students who have participated in the project to date.