The Dunkirk Town Hall renovation is once again at a standstill.
At a recent workshop of the Dunkirk Town Board, Town Supervisor Richard Purol reported on a meeting with the architects from Sandberg and Kessler.
He was disappointed in the plans the architects put forward.
Article Photos

OBSERVER Photo by Nicole Gugino
Dunkirk Town Supervisor Richard Purol explained to the Town Board recently renovations on the town hall will be delayed once again. Also pictured are councilmen Mark Kutner (left) and Robert Penharlow.
"The biggest thing is when we met with Sandberg and Kessler we gave them a figure not to exceed that amount and they went way over which really wasn't what we needed to hear. So they said they would come up with some other ideas but this is not really doing an awful lot for me," Purol said.
The town on its list of items it wanted from the renovation included moving the clerks to the front of the building, moving the bathrooms, a break room and keeping the space small enough so as not to require a sprinkler system. Purol said the design did not meet any of these and only included a 13-foot by 36-foot addition.
"We are back to square one," he said.
He said the day after the presentation from the architects the town received a letter about possible grant funding, but the board seemed skeptical of how much this would lower the cost.
When asked if this means the town will once again have to go out for request for proposals, Purol said he did not know at that time.
The Dunkirk Town Board will hold its regular meeting Dec. 18.
In other business:
The rails on one of the town trucks are being fixed at Rexford garage. Purol said the town had to have the rails replaced for the 12-year-old truck to pass inspection. He also said while that is being done the starter and belts will be replaced to save on what will be a future repair. He said these improvements could extend the life of the vehicle another 10 years.
The board received a letter of resignation from fire inspector Thomas Brown effective Dec. 31. Brown has held the position since the 1980s. Purol said Code Enforcement Officer Ryan Mourer will be responsible for the position's duties until the town can decide what to do about the vacancy.
At the last meeting of the town board, the board created an alternate zoning board position and asked Thomas Tarnowski to fill the spot. Purol reported Tarnowski accepted and has had training.
Also at the last meeting the town approved the budget with a tax levy of $50,742, decreasing the tax rate by $0.08 to $0.50 per $1,000 in assessed value. It was also able to stay under the tax levy cap with this budget.
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