LYNN — Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) trustees seek the public’s help to secure funding for the historic building’s restoration and elevator installation.
The GAR building on Andrews Street, currently obscured behind scaffolding, is still used for its original purpose — to honor the men who fought to save the Union in the Civil War. The building and museum, originally constructed in 1885, now serve as a memorial site for all veterans.
GAR Curator Wendy Joseph said that in order to fix the building’s crumbling brick facade, which is currently being held up by scaffolding, the trustees will first have to install an elevator in order to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
The city allocated $1.2 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding toward the building’s renovation this summer.
While $1.2 million was enough money to install an elevator at the time, Joseph said that supply chain shortages raised the project’s cost, leaving the GAR trustees $500,000 short of the funds needed to install an elevator.
Joseph said that the GAR trustees applied for round two ARPA funding this winter, but the city denied the funding. She added that to remain ADA compliant, the renovation, which will likely cost more than a third of the building’s total value, must start with an elevator.
“They weren’t able to fund us on that second round, so we’re in the red for this very important elevator project,” Joseph said. “Even if an angel dropped down on us and gave us all the money we needed to completely renovate this building, the ADA requirements say that if you’re spending one third of the assessed value of this building on anything, it better be making it accessible.”
In order to meet ARPA deadlines and keep their funding, Jospehs the GAR trustees must successfully requisition their ARPA funds by 2024 and complete the project by 2026. If the trustees can not raise and spend the remaining $500,000 needed for an elevator by the end of the year, they will lose their $1.2 million.
To fill their funding gap, the trustees will soon apply for $200,000 through the Massachusetts Cultural Facilities Funding (CFF) grant which is awarded by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
Joseph said that the GAR trustees are currently asking for letters of support from community members to prove the building’s cultural importance in Lynn.
“We’re working on that grant right now, which is due at the beginning of February. We’ve gathered letters of support from various community partners. Anyone who actually wants to put in a letter of support as a citizen can send that letter right to the GAR at 58 Andrews St.,” Joseph said.
Those who wish to donate to the GAR elevator project can also make checks out to The City of Lynn, with the memo “GAR” or “GAR Elevator.” Donations can be sent to 58 Andrews St.
At the time of its construction, the Lynn GAR center had the largest membership in the country, Joseph said. She added that the building’s membership was matched only by its original owners’ generosity and pursuit of justice.
“They put their lives on their line and they spent the rest of their lives on a quest to take care of people. Even when this building was being built, they realized there’s still more charity work to be done — there’s still more social justice work to be done,” Joseph said. “The physical building is a memorial to all veterans.”
