Insurance money in hand, Barker readies plans for new village hall and library [The Buffalo News, N.Y.]

Sep. 23—The Village of Barker, whose village hall and public library were destroyed in a January 2019 fire, finally has received an insurance settlement and has taken bids from contractors to reconstruct the building.

The same site and a similar design will be used for the combination building, Seanna Corwin-Bradley, deputy mayor, said Thursday.

Last week, the village received an insurance payment of $678,422. Wednesday, the State Education Department announced a library construction grant of $365,378.

The library previously received an insurance settlement of $160,000 for its ruined collection of books and other materials, library board president Kathie Smith said.

Corwin-Bradley said the Village Board will meet with engineers next week to discuss the construction bids.

"They were a little higher than we hoped," Smith said.

She said village leaders hope to have the shell of the new building completed before winter.

The library will lease its space from the village, as it did in the old building, Smith said.

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