GUILFORD – Despite the posted notice that the Guilford town clerk’s office will be closed this week, there was still a bevy of activity at the 1950s era building which has housed the town hall and highway garage for more than a half a century.
Before the early morning fog had fully lifted, a handful of town employees and a crew of volunteers were already hard at work Monday, removing files and furniture from the old building and transporting it all to the brand new 3,100 square-foot facility roughly a mile up Marble Road.
As the long-awaited move begins, all but two of the construction contracts have been closed out, Building Committee Chairman Sue McIntyre informed the board at a meeting last Wednesday.
“We’re tying up loose ends,” McIntyre said, as she described the last of the punch list items awaiting completion.
At the end of May, the committee chair was predicting the town would be settled into the new facility by July, but it took longer than expected to wrap up the final details. The last impediments were a delay in the installation of the town hall’s alarm system and some remaining electrical work at the new 10,400 square-foot highway garage.
This week will be spent moving and arranging the new offices, as well as cleaning the facility in preparation for opening to the public.
According to Town Councilman George Seneck, the town hopes to be fully settled into the building in time for an open house tentatively scheduled for 1 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12. The event will be a simple affair, McIntyre told the board, featuring both a formal ribbon cutting and a chance for Guilford residents to tour both facilities.
Town Clerk Gail Hoffman plans to resume her regular office hours in the new building on Monday, Aug. 24.