Community Hall roof gets an upgrade

The Lincoln Community Hall got a long-needed upgrade to its roof last week after years of problems with leaks and the buildup of ice and snow in the winters.

Schrock Roofing of Victor tackled the task of re-doing the roof of the century-old building, following a search for a roofer who would be willing to take it on.

Renee Lundberg, Community Hall Association treasurer, said the roof of the hall was re-shingled about a decade ago, but problems with leaking have gotten worse lately, with leaks even appearing during a recent heavy rainstorm

"Before that, we knew the roof needed to be repaired. The main emphasis was the ice buildup on the edges in the winter," she said. A couple of years ago, the ice build up led to water leakage into the snack room between the main hall and the kitchen.

Hall Association President Ernie Lundberg, Renee's husband, said the roof also regularly leaked over the stage, and during the winter there was an ongoing need to shovel snow off the roof and break up the ice built up along the eaves. That in turn led to damaged shingles and let water infiltrate between them, which leaked through the underlying wood planks. "It was starting to be a concern of, if you lose your roof, you lose your structure."

The new roof includes features that should solve those issues

"These are a new style of shingles they put on," Ernie said. "Instead of just lapping over, they seal to each other so there won't be any siphoning up under any of the shingles. And it's supposed to be warrantied for 40 years, so it should outlast us."

Additionally, the new roof included a thermal mesh under the shingles that extends four feet up from the eaves. The mesh is on a temperature sensor for the winter and is designed to help mitigate the ice buildup.

The new roof should also protect the old roof planks that likely date to the original 1918 construction.

Schrock patched some areas that needed it, then laid down new sheeting over the old boards.

"They had to re-sheet the roof because the shingles needed a solid surface," Ernie said.

Furthermore, Schrock addressed a dip in the roof over the hall kitchen that had some people concerned about its structural integrity. Ernie said it turned out to just be the result of warped, but sound, boards. "They added some new rafters on top of the old roofing," he said. "There's still a slight dip there but it's pretty flat."

With the new roof in place, all that remains for the project is to replace and repaint the fascia.

The Hall Board had the money on hand to upgrade the roof thanks to proceeds from the sale of the property and cabin bequeathed to them by Robert 'Pepe' Ledeau, who passed away in July of 2020.

"We thought we should put the money to good use. The goal is to preserve the hall for the next 100 years," Renee said.

The next major upgrade slated for the Hall is the replacement of the kitchen's propane stove and range with a modern version. The existing range requires the lighting of multiple pilot lights, a process that usually requires the help of board member or someone trained in the correct sequence to get it going. Renee said that can present a safety hazard, particularly if the pilot lights aren't shut off properly. The new stove will feature modern electrical ignition.