Friday, March 29, 2024

LTE: FRANK DURANT “GET THE TORCH BACK WHERE IT BELONGS”

Dear Neighbors, Voters, Friends

E FRANK Bristol_County_Courthouse_B&W

Our Taunton Superior Court House was built in 1894. The granite structure featured a magnificent copper dome and was capped by a torch that symbolized enlightenment, hope, truth, justice and liberty.??It could be seen from?? miles away,?? let alone from the Taunton Green.

After 109 years , the torch that once perched atop our halls of justice, was no more.??This symbol of our County Government has been absent from the dome since 2003 .????

The elements of time and lack of maintenance had taken a toll on the courthouse and had weakened the substructure. For the last fifteen years, the Torch has been resting nearby, waiting for its time to return.??

Since then, countless renovation talks have taken place. Engineers have made inquiries, state law makers have talked of multiple phase processes to reshape and rehabilitate the courthouse complex. Just recently, emergency crews have worked to stop massive leaking in the buildings roofs while a complete overhaul is still waiting to take place.????

Progress has been made with the new addition of the district courthouse that opened in 2011. However, our 19th century old superior court building still needs upgrades to be ready for the 21st century.??

With issues of preserving the architecture while upgrading with modern technology, the residents of Bristol County are unaware of any progress let alone the future of the building.????

Funds were available under the State Capitol Investment Plan on several occasions. Recently, the Mass Senate voted to authorize 3.6 billion to repair our capital facilities throughout the State of Massachusetts with hopes that some funds make it to Taunton.

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With that said, to bring this to the attention to the residents of Bristol County, along with “running” for the office of Bristol County Commissioner, I will attempt to “run” the distance of the county from our New Bedford Superior Court House to our Taunton Superior Court House. The 30 miles that I attempt to run will hopefully bring attention to our county properties that need to be updated and better maintained.?? And if I am elected, I will demand the torch return to its rightful location, atop our superior court building, where it belongs.??

Sincerely,

Frank Durant

Please learn more, please visit my facebook page

 

@????https://www.facebook.com/FrankForBristolCounty/??

and our website at??

www.Frank4Bristol.com??

for more info.