Addison Twp. now has a committee to handle the issue of moving Arnold Auditorium and using it as a welcome center for Watershed Preserve park.
‘Some projects are worth doing,? said Supervisor Bruce Pearson. ‘This is one of them. It defines who we are and where we came from, and it’s definitely something people can rally around.?
At its Jan. 20 board of trustees meeting, the township formed the three-member committee consisting of Trustee Ed Brakefield and residents Bob Godkin and Bill Devine. Brakefield will handle promotions and will report to the trustees, Godkin will oversee the carpenter work and Devine will handle logistics.
Godkin is the great-grandson of Robert Arnold. Along with his brother Jerome, Arnold constructed the building, located near the intersection of Hosner and Lakeville roads, around 1856.
The structure served as a school from roughly 1856 through 1957 and as a place of worship until 1902.
The committee will explore options for not only moving the auditorium to the park but also the best ways to preserve it. Their first meeting has yet to be determined, but they intend to do so as soon as possible.
The idea is to restore the former schoolhouse to its original condition. Pearson said he would even like to see Arnold Auditorium return to its original name ? Arnold School. While used by Addison Township Community Church, it served as an auditorium.
Currently, the church owns the building but is allowing it to be moved, Pearson said, adding that the church officials think it’s a wonderful idea that it’s going to be restored.
Moving the building could prove to be an anything-but-simple operation, but it will give township officials the opportunity to make necessary repairs.
Godkin said the chimney itself is in bad shape with no mortar between the bricks. ‘It’ll have to be taken down and repaired.?
Godkin added that when the weather improves, they’ll need to inspect the building to completely assess what needs to be done.
‘I was up on the roof several years ago looking at (the) chimney, and the roof was in bad shape then,? he added. ‘I don’t know structurally how bad it is, but I know the shingles are just about gone. It’s worse now and there may be other damage to the roof boards.?
Instead of transporting the entire building or disassembling only the roof or chimney, the auditorium could be disassembled and then reassembled at its new location at the park.
If this method is used, Pearson said he’d like to make the reassembly a community event, similar to an Amish-style barn raising with work sessions and potluck meals.
One other constructive idea was suggested at the township meeting by Sereal Gravlin. This was to have everybody in the township donate a stone for the fascia all around the building’s footings along with the stones in the building’s original footings.
At the meeting, the township trustees also approved a request for the park entrance construction and expenditures that would waive the purchasing ordinance stipulating the purchase must not exceed $10,000.
The township had previously received estimates above $40,000 for the job on the open market.
The park’s new entrance will be just north of the old entrance.
Specifically, the Arnold schoolhouse will be in the parking lot’s far end. From there the paths all open to the park and patrons can enter the welcome center, exit and go right into the park.
Work for the excavating, tree clearing and laying of the foundation are all being donated.
No decision has been made yet on the park’s official name, although, according to Pearson, some have stated a desire to see ‘Watershed Preserve? as part of the name since the park is the area of headwaters for the Flint, Bell and Clinton Rivers.