The White County American Legion is making much-needed repairs to the deteriorating foundation that supports the building’s elevator.
White County Veterans Service Officer Matthew Elmore said an elevator was installed in 2012 to make the building more handicap accessible. In 2024, the elevator began separating from the building, and repair estimates totaled about $30,000. After several months, the American Legion secured funding from the Joe and Patricia Snodgrass Charitable Trust to cover the cost of the project.
“We are very grateful that the charitable trust was able to fund the project for us, and we thank them immensely for that because $30,000 is quite a bit of money for a repair,” Elmore said.
Elmore said the repairs involve installing structural piers to stabilize the foundation and adding polyfoam beneath it to lift and level the structure. He said the work is expected to be completed Friday.
“They are completed with putting the piers in,” Elmore said. “They are done with that, and I think they are coming out today to do the concrete work because they had to tear all our concrete up around the elevator there. So they are putting that back, and then supposedly Friday, they are coming in to put what they call polyfoam in there.”
Elmore said the elevator is critical to keeping the building accessible for those with mobility challenges, noting that many veterans who regularly use the facility are handicapped.
“It’s very important to our veteran population and our public population, too, because they use the building also, but it helps give us access to the top part of the building,” Elmore said. “Like I say, this building was built back in the mid-30s, and you did not think about handicap accessibility back then.”
Elmore said the American Legion will not have to repay the funding. He said the organization is grateful and looking forward to having the elevator fully operational again.