Library patrons looking out the windows of the county library toward Aultman Street or visitors walking down the steps of the county courthouse may have noticed workers up on the roof of the Centennial Fine Arts Center, the historic building owned by the White Pine Community Choir Association.
These workers represent the beginning of the new roof project at the CFAC. This project will involve the removal of the three layers of roofing currently stacked on top of each other and then the construction of a brand-new roof.
“The leaky roof has been an issue for quite some time, but recently it has gotten so much worse,” said Bill Wilson, vice-president of the community choir association. “The roof up there now has allowed water to enter the building and damage the interior. In fact, we have big slabs of plaster falling off the inside ceiling of the sanctuary in some places, and in other places we have pans on the floor to catch the water that is leaking in.”
Asbestos abatement started on the roof of the Community Choir building.
The top roof layer was installed in the 1950s, and, like many building materials at that time, contains asbestos within the roof shingles. Working as a team, the roof architect, environmental consultants, Brownfields program and Nevada Division of Environmental Protection have developed a plan to safely remove this top layer.
This work will be done by specialists in accordance with strict federal guidelines established for this type of work. This phase of the project will last between two and three weeks.
The remaining two asbestos-free roof layers will be removed by the general contractor, who will then install sheeting and construct a new roof. The contractor estimates that this portion of the project will take approximately four or five weeks.
Since the building is listed on the National Register for Historic Places, the roof has been designed to specific historic standards to reflect what the roof originally looked like when the building was constructed in 1927.
Community choir members are delighted that the new roof will be installed before winter sets in.
We are looking forward to the Centennial Fine Arts Center being able to host community events,” Wilson said. “The new roof is an important step in securing the integrity of the building and continuing to welcome visitors to this unique space.”
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