Barrington White House renovations should be done by July 4
With 105 days to go before the public unveiling, work crews at the Barrington White House are busy raising the roof, along with a litany of other tasks, on the 117-year-old building.
Chet Busse, a senior project manager with Pepper Construction, said he feels the house, located at 145 W. Main St., will be ready for its close-up at the Fourth of July public unveiling, despite the awful winter weather.
“It was the worst February I've ever seen,” Busse said. “You always plan for some bad weather, but you can never plan for that.”
Despite Mother Nature's obstacles, workers have achieved much since the project got underway in late July 2014. Crews have dug 450- to 500-foot-deep geothermal wells, repaired and strengthened the building's foundation, and installed a state-of-the-art roof truss system.
The new roof will more than double the ceiling height of the building's top floor while maintaining the old roof's profile. The building's third floor will be a ballroom that can handle events for groups of around 200 people, but now it looks more like a massive metal rib cage.
There is still much to be done, including installing an elevator, removing and replacing 100-year-old lead paint, finishing the interior, and landscaping the surroundings, which weather and heavy equipment have turned into a dirt wasteland.
The work has been done by talented craftsmen, including Tony Frisone, a carpenter and foreman. Frisone usually can be found repairing and restoring original wood fixtures in his makeshift workshop in what once was a grand dining room.
“Really, to find a guy like Tony who can do this on-site as compared to sending it out to a shop, we're saving a lot of money here,” Busse said.
The $6.1 million project is being funded through community donations and grants. Beth Raseman, the project coordinator for the village, said more than $5 million has been raised, including donations from local businesses for things like furniture and plumbing fixtures.
“We have over 200 donors now, and a year ago we were at like 33.” Raseman said. “A lot of people are stepping up to help.”
Any donation of $1,000 or more will be listed on the donor wall inside the building.
Organizers plan to hold a major donor thank you event before the White House's grand public unveiling during the village's Fourth of July festivities.
“It's doable,” Busse said of the July 4 deadline. “But it's always dependent on the weather. If we get four weeks of rain or whatever, we'll see.”
More information on the project can be found at barringtonswhitehouse.com.