HARDWICK – Prospects of finding a path forward for efforts to save the former Civic Standard building at 42 S. Main St. in Hardwick were dampened last week when a proposal to take on renovations was rejected by the building’s owner.
photo courtesy The Civic Standard
A note sent Friday by Shari Cornish to members of the FOCUS 42 Restoration Team said a response from The Civic Standard’s board “does not offer a path forward for our effort to restore and preserve the former Gazette Building.”
FOCUS 42, named for the address of the 42 S. Main Street building that is in a FEMA buyout program and now sits empty, across from The Civic Standard, is an ad hoc group formed under the Hardwick Downtown Partnership (HDP) Economic Vitality Committee. A proposal it submitted April 1 included a $44,000 proposed contract from Engineering Ventures, P.C., saying, “Our work will include design of foundation replacement and slope stabilization of the river side of the building and associated permitting.”
The timeline provided by HDP offered pre-development planning and fundraising this spring, finalizing a design and putting the project out to bid this summer and implementing foundation work in the fall.
Following the foundation stabilization, a second phase was proposed during the 2026-2027 winter and spring to address the rest of the building’s needs that include exterior painting and roof leaks with community engagement and additional fundraising.
The Civic Standard’s response noted the lack of a realistic timeline for the necessary permitting.
It then added, “Our RFP had a submission deadline of December 2025. We made an exception to accept your proposal in April given our respect for the effort and our shared concern for the building’s future.”
Further, The Civic Standard indicated they expect FEMA could be ready to demolish the building this summer and their decision to move forward would then have to be made without delay. Throughout this process The Civic’s Rose Friedman has been clear they would reject the buyout only if they were certain the building had the appropriate stewards.
“As this process has unfolded, it has become clear that the building presents significant challenges, and that any path forward will need to carefully account for those realities,” said The Civic’s Board Chair Lauren Antler.
Referring to the RFP deadline, The Civic response indicated, “That deadline existed for important reasons — to align with the FEMA buyout timeline, which we now anticipate could take place as early as this summer, and to ensure the building doesn’t continue to deteriorate in a way that creates broader consequences for the town.”
Cornish said, “I am disappointed. I perhaps was overly optimistic that they would respond with a counter proposal rather than simply rejecting our proposal entirely. I couldn’t imagine that they wouldn’t allow volunteers to step in to provide the capacity that they cannot offer to save the building that was given to their organization. This may ultimately mean the loss of a building now, but it could mean a bigger loss in the long run for the physical well being of our downtown.”
Antler said, “Our primary goal has been to identify a steward who could demonstrate — before any transfer of ownership — the operational and financial capacity to take on a project of this complexity. 42 S. Main Street is a historic building in a floodway with significant unresolved structural needs.”
Though several others who expressed interest in the building stepped back after the complexity and expense of the project in the Lamoille River floodway became clear, Antler left a path open to save the building, saying, “If there are organizations or interested parties who can take on the significant foundation work to stabilize the building, assume the carrying costs, keep it in compliance with insurance requirements and realistically assess the risks, we welcome full and complete proposals that would be able to move forward prior to the FEMA deadline.”
“Hopefully this isn’t the end of the story and there can still be a path forward with keeping this building a part of our community,” said Cornish.
