LISBON Village green to receive renovations

Officials are hoping a new municipal building can be built sometime in the next two years.
By NORMAN LEIGH
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
LISBON -- The village will be celebrating its 200th birthday next year with a freshly renovated town green.
Crews have been working since July on a $917,218 project to replace and rebuild the public space occupying the heart of the village. Work is expected to conclude this month, said Kevin Brooks, village administrator.
Although the project is coinciding with the village's bicentennial, the milestone didn't trigger the undertaking.
Village officials are looking toward Lisbon's future in having the work done now, Brooks said.
Motivation
"The main motivation for this project was economic development," he added.
Village officials believe an attractive downtown that reflects Lisbon's two-century-old layout and architecture will help lure development, Brooks said.
The renovation project includes using brick to replace concrete walkways through the town green, restoration of the green's gazebo, replacement of a war memorial, installation of a new fountain and park benches, construction of a brick "Welcome to Lisbon" sign and erection of a marker noting the village's place on the Lincoln Highway, which is now U.S. Route 30.
The historical highway, the nation's first paved coast-to-coast road, cuts through the heart of the village.
Funding
Funding for the restoration comes from state and federal grants, property owner assessments and village funds.
This marks the second consecutive year the village's downtown has undergone renovation.
Last year, a nearly $1.5 million face-lift, funded with federal, state and local money, included installation of new brick-lined sidewalks and period lampposts in the downtown.
Next on the village's to-do list is a new municipal building, Brooks said.
The village now has its administrative and police department offices in a nearly century-old building on Nelson Avenue.
The structure is outdated and overcrowded, Brooks said.
Village officials are considering building a new municipal building sometime in late 2003 and early 2004 on a village-owned vacant lot near Market and Chestnut streets, Brooks said.
"Our first preference would be to build there," he said.
But he added that "nothing has been finalized" regarding a site, other than that the municipal building should be in the downtown, as opposed to the village's commercial district along state Route 45, north of the town green.
Estimated cost of the proposed 9,600-square-foot structure would be about $900,000, Brooks said.
Village officials believe they can secure a state grant for about half the amount and probably would borrow the rest, he added.