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Selected Editorials from the Editor

Suns & Shields Christian Inspirational Writings by Rachelle Hamlin

Selected editorials from Dr. Katherine Albrecht, Ed. D.

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The Roberts Trap is Sprung

By:  Bill Dunne
www.americanthinker.com
One of the most overlooked aspects of the year just ended is the vindication of Chief Justice John Roberts -- a vindication that showed up as the national catastrophe known as ObamaCare got rolling.  Roberts may have also doomed Hillary Clinton's chance to live in the White House again... click here to read whole editorial

 

Former Key Bank Building May Be Demolished

 

By:  David Deschesne

Fort Fairfield Journal, April 29, 2015

 

FORT FAIRFIELD—The parks and parking lot business is booming in Fort Fairfield as one building after another is being torn down and converted into either green space or a parking lot.  This summer, a landmark of Fort Fairfield’s Main Street may be the next building brought to the ground in this era of economic contraction foisted upon us by the Federal Reserve’s debt-based money   system and the U.S. government’s highly successful strategy of exporting jobs and industry to Mexico,  China and third-world countries.

   The Fort Fairfield National Bank was built around 80 years ago and until recently had been operated as a bank.   In its history, the Fort Fairfield Municipal Court and law office of Phillip Roberts were once located on the upper floors.   Key Bank is the last bank to occupy the building until they vacated it a little over a year ago.

   The building and the adjacent parking lot is currently owned by Waneta Moir who is represented by her son, Paul in the attempted sale of the property.  The building is currently assessed at $213,500 but is for sale at the drastically reduced price of $75,000.  While there has been some general interest in purchasing the building, no solid leads, business plan or reuse strategy has been developed.

   Tim Goff, Executive Director of the Fort Fairfield Chamber of Commerce and board member of the Fort Fairfield Quality of Place Council has been actively pursuing options for the building with the hopes of preventing it from being razed this summer.

   “In many towns there's a balance between maintaining and reusing infrastructure as it ages and traditional uses versus modern uses.  I wish I could stand here today and tell you there's a buyer and it's not going to be torn down in June,” Goff told the Fort Fairfield Town Council during their April meeting.  “I don't know the answers at this point but I continue to solicit input and advice and ideas.”

   Goff recently toured the building with a contractor to determine the cost of any immediate upgrades to keep it in usable condition.  “ It was just kind of a preliminary rundown with them.  Just to protect the shell.  If you think about the windows, walls and ceiling as being the shell of that building the price tag that he quoted me would be in the area of $100,000.  The thought process on that is to stop it from deteriorating.”

  Currently there is some water getting inside the building. 

   “I continue to keep my door open and take advice from anyone.  One of the things I keep hearing is that folks would really like to sit down somewhere and just talk about what the potential is.  I definitely heard a lot of mixed reviews on if a public entity should buy it or even be involved with the purchase of it.  I don't have those answers and it's not for me to decide but it's for us to continue to explore and figure out because the overwhelming sentiment that I heard as that regardless of who takes it over or what's done with it it'd be a shame and a loss to see it go.”  

   Options for retail space and middle-income apartments had been offered as ideas for reuse, but government funded ‘section 8’ apartments do not seem to have the support of those in the general public who were questioned.

   The windows on the first floor are all new vinyl windows and most of the interior formerly occupied by Key Bank is still reusable. "It was suggested to replace the windows on the second and third floors of which there are about 50 to 55 windows the estimate was about $500 a window plus the cost of bringing in the lift to do it.” 

   At just $75,000 the building is priced at bargain basement prices.  “The purchase price is low but what do you do with it once you have it and how much is that going to cost to bring that up to even usable, let alone world-class?”

 

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