BAY ROBERTS, N.L. — An historic property in Bay Roberts has been in need of a good roofer, willing to look after some repairs. Trouble was, until quite recently, they couldn’t find anyone to do the job.
The subject of the Cable Building’s roof came up at the April 9 council meeting. Minutes from a March 14 meeting of the town’s Heritage Advisory Committee were tabled and mentioned the March 22 closing date for a tender to repair the roof.
“There were some people who took out the tender specs, but not one person applied,” said Mayor Philip Wood. “I guess this is the problem we’ve had previous.”
Wood, a member of the committee, confirmed no bids for the job were received. The Cable Building is home to the town offices on the main floor. Above them is the Road to Yesterday Museum and Christopher Pratt Gallery, both operated by Bay Roberts Heritage Society Inc.
Wood noted someone was hired for the job in 2018, but that person ultimately stepped away from the job.
According to Wood, Heritage Society chairman Eric Jerrett was going to look through his contacts to see if he could find anyone to do the job.
In a subsequent interview with The Compass, Jerrett confirmed his colleague Ed Hayes has since found someone to do the job and that a contract has been awarded for the work. He expects work on the repairs, which are for the concrete gutter that runs along the eaves trough, will begin in June.
According to Jerrett, problems with the roof have been ongoing for about three years, with water damage limited to windows. Fortunately, this did not impact any of the art in the gallery space or artifacts kept in the museum.
