By ANN BELCHER
OBSERVER Correspondent
BROCTON - Crews from the Village of Brocton and the Buffalo Iron Company were busy earlier this month removing the last remaining pieces of the four-corner arch from Brocton's sidewalks.
Article Photos
Submitted Photos
Village of Brocton and Buffalo Iron Company crews work at removing the existing bases of the four corner arch in order to make room for the newly refurbished structure. A piece of one of the existing bases has been preserved for posterity and local history. The new arch is scheduled to be set, relit and rededicated this spring.
In order to make room for the newly refurbished structure, the remaining concrete bases and steel posts had to be dug out from underground, which was approximately four feet beneath ground level.
According to Brocton Mayor Dave Hazelton, the work "is pretty much on schedule."
"Earlier in the week, the new lower section of the arch was scheduled to be formed in Chicago, that piece of rolled steel will then be forwarded to Buffalo and will then be sandblasted and ready for paint," stated Hazelton at the village board meeting.
Although it was a lot of physical labor to remove the posts and concrete, Hazelton noted no problems were reported in the process and crews were finishing up just before 4 p.m. traffic was set to come through Brocton.
The new bases which will hold a shiny, new four corner arch will be set approximately five and a half feet underground according to the mayor.
Pieces of the old bases were preserved by the village, as several pieces of material have been to serve as tangible pieces of Brocton/Portland history.
Going forward on schedule, the arch is set to be reset, relit and rededicated in the center of the village this spring.
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