After nearly a century at the heart of the community, the historic Bainbridge Township Town Hall gym room was reduced to rubble June 17 — its demolition marking the end of a long-debated project fueled by safety concerns, structural warnings and bittersweet memories.
After nearly a century at the heart of the community, the historic Bainbridge Township Town Hall gym room was reduced to rubble June 17 — its demolition marking the end of a long-debated project fueled by safety concerns, structural warnings and bittersweet memories.
A Trip Down Memory Lane
One of the challenges officials faced in tearing the gymnasium down was the potential loss of historical value, which they ran into when evaluating the front room.
It was originally built in the 1800s by the then Bainbridge Board of Education, according to long-time Bainbridge Township Historical Society member Joan Demirjian.
The building — located off of state Route 306 behind the fire department — was used as a gymnasium for school students.
Lifetime resident Bill Takacs attended first and second grade in the town hall gym in the early 1940s, he said.
It was used as the school auditorium for plays, graduations, ceremonies, meetings and dances, according to the historical society.
“Many see it as an important structure, well used in the township,” Demirjian wrote last year.
The Sons of Temperance used the building as a meeting hall and gave it to Bainbridge once the group built a hall, which is now the Bainbridge Township Historical Society museum, Demirjian said.
“We had a lot of good times there,” Bainbridge resident Barbara Phan told trustees last year, adding the building was also used for pancake breakfasts, craft shows, meetings, dinners and plays.
The gym had the original tongue-and-groove beaded ceiling and walls, according to historical society records, which added the stage had original floors and joists.
Safety Concerns
Township officials have been discussing the idea of modernizing the building since COVID-19, when trustees wanted to improve their online meetings by building a new trustees room, according to previous reporting.
Fast-forward to present, the renovation project — which would include demolition of the room cap and basement — was fast-tracked in February after Drew Thompson, of DS Architecture in Cleveland, told township officials the town hall was dangerous and should be closed immediately.
Thompson sent a letter to trustees following a walk-through of the town hall Feb. 24.
“We observed what appears to be a significant escalation in structural damage to the Bainbridge town hall gym. Based on our professional assessment, there is a substantial risk of catastrophic structural failure, posing a serious threat to the health, safety and welfare of all occupants,” Thompson said in the letter. “Given these concerns, we strongly recommend that the entire town hall building and surrounding area be temporarily vacated as a precautionary measure.”
The Geauga County Building Department did a second walk-through with DS to confirm the state of the building, Bainbridge Township Trustee Kristina O’Brien said earlier this year.
Trustee Michael Bates emphasized the building is a hazard back in April.
“We talked about this project the very first month that I was a trustee and I’m now in my last year of my first term and it’s time to do something,” he said. “The building is falling down. I watched (Service Director Jim Stanek) move those walls (with his hands). I felt like running for cover when he did it because I thought the roof was going to fall down on top of me. It was scary.”
Bainbridge Township Service Director Jim Stanek reiterated his safety concerns on a call in March.
“The building kind of decided on its own that it’s not going to be saved,” he said.
To prepare for the demolition, the service department removed furnace units from the basement, relocated the electrical panel and cap, removed plumbing from the basement, and located and marked all underground utilities, Assistant Service Director Alex Hansel said.
The service department installed a conduit for a new fiber optic line between the Bainbridge Township police and fire departments, he said, adding they moved all of their communications to the police department.
Next Steps
Next steps include continuing renovations to rebuild the demolished town hall meeting room, as well as upgrades to trustees’ chambers and accessibility improvements.
The lowest bid for the project was $934,334, which included plans to remove electrical, plumbing and other utilities. However, the service department was able to contract those services out to save money.
DS Architecture expects new bids to be at $737,000 for the new town hall room and trustees’ chambers, said Jeff Myers, of DS, at the June 23 trustees meeting.
Stanek told those in attendance he thought the number would be lower.
“I was a little disappointed when I saw the new estimate,” he said.
Bids for the renovations will be open until July 25 at 10 a.m.
As a result of the building closure, officials have relocated departments and meeting spots.
The Bainbridge Township Zoning Department relocated to the Burns-Lindow Building at 8465 Bainbridge Road. Bainbridge’s food pantry, Food for Friends, moved to the Lakeside building at 8558 Crackel Road; the township fiscal office has been relocated to the fire department’s meeting room at 17822 Chillicothe Road; and the Bainbridge Township Zoning Commission and Board of Zoning Appeals meetings will be held in Centerville Mills Dining Hall at 8558 Crackel Road.
Trustees will continue meeting at the service department at 17800 Haskins Road.
