Support sought for JJCL grant (12/8/04)

Officials from a local learning center are hopeful that a state grant will help stop the rapid deterioration of the center’s proposed permanent location.

The John Jay Center for Learning is asking for public support for a $500,000 grant from the Indiana Department of Commerce that would be used to make the Weiler Building weather-tight.

A public hearing on the grant application, which will be submitted in mid-January, will be held Thursday, Dec. 16, at 5:30 p.m. in the council chambers at the Portland Fire Station on North Franklin Street.

Doug Inman, president of the board of directors for John Jay Center for Learning, said this morning the $500,000 would be used to make repairs to the roof and to the parapet, or the outside walls which are located higher than the roof-line.

“The goal is securing the roof. In order to do that, those walls above the roof line must be taken apart and then reconstructed,” Inman said.

Wayne Bailey, Jay County community developer, asked members of the Jay County Development Board for their support Tuesday. Bailey, who has been involved in a variety of ways with the Weiler Building project, said participation in the Dec. 16 hearing will have an influence on whether the grant is awarded.

Development of plans for the site are currently under way. Those plans are being largely funded by a DOC planning grant. Applications for construction grants aren’t normally made until the completion of planning, Bailey said, but the process is being accelerated because of the condition of the building.

Firm estimates on the total cost of rehabilitation of the 50,000-square foot building should be available sometime later this month. Inman said that amount will likely be significantly higher than an estimate of $1 million to $1.4 million determined in a study several years ago.

An estimate for construction of a new 12,000-square foot headquarters near East Jay Middle School was $3.5 million. That site is being developed as Freedom Park to honor the county’s veterans.

Inman said JJCL plans to only apply one time for grant funding to the department of commerce. “I just think we’re looking for other funding sources as we move past the initial stage,” Inman said.

An anonymous gift of $1 million was given several years ago to The Portland Foundation for the establishment of a permanent learning center in downtown Portland. Fifty percent, or $500,000, of that initial gift, may be used for capital/construction expenses, with the remainder being used to create an endowment. With interest, that endowment has grown to about $750,000.

The former department/furniture store building, which was acquired earlier this year by JJCL, has deteriorated rapidly over the past few years. Although the building is constructed over a steel beam framework, water infiltrating through the roof has damaged plaster in the interior and caused some of the exterior bricks to pull away.

That damage was possibly accelerated by actions taken several years ago when an Ohio restoration company was considering purchasing the building.

In an attempt to alleviate pressure on the roof, several layers of roofing material were removed, allowing water to seep into the building at a more rapid pace.

“They were trying to alleviate the problem ... but what’s happened is they’ve actually made it worse inside. It’s much more of an expensive repair and rehabilitation,” Inman.

Although the water damage to the interior is significant, Inman said the basement normally has an inch or less of standing water. He said the water is either draining through the sump system or through the basement walls.[[In-content Ad]]