Staff writer

sbeveridge@observer-reporter.com

DEEMSTON - Tiny Deemston Borough will be able to thank gamblers at a slots parlor for having central heat for the first time in years in the borough building.

Council is preparing to hire a contractor to update the municipal offices in an old one-room schoolhouse that is in dire need of repair.

"It needs a new roof," said Council President Bill Beck. "There is no basement. It needs shored up. It needs new plumbing."

Deemston Council surprised the stiff competition last month when it was awarded a $100,000 share of money drawn from the purses at The Meadows Racetrack & Casino in North Strabane Township. There had been 85 proposals for a share of the new $8.2 million revenue source, but just 26 received grants.

Deemston made the cut because council hired a consultant to draft a proposal for the project, and had showed to Washington County that it had already raised a considerable amount of money for the renovations, Beck said.

"We're paying for half the project. We're not here asking for the moon," he said Thursday.

The work is expected to cost more than $300,000 and be completed by Christmas. The plans call for the vinyl siding to be removed from the exterior walls and replaced with new wood siding to mimic the original look of the old schoolhouse.

The bell tower above the entrance will be rebuilt and possibly house the original bell. The original wood floors will be retained, cleaned and polished.

The borough building was singled out this year as being one of five polling places that were not handicapped accessible. To change that, a ramp will be installed to the front door, and a new bathroom that meets modern codes will be built.

Beck said the building will double as a community center in the rural borough with a population of a little more than 800 people. When it opens, it will have a bank of four computers for the public.

Council will hold a special meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the borough building at 1622 Morey Road to further discuss the project.

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