The newly renovated Fisher Hall in Burrell Lake Park sports clean, modern industrial chic decor while keeping its rustic vibe.
After a closure of more than a year for the work amid operating complications during the pandemic, the longtime social hall in Lower Burrell is now available for rent.
City council recently raised the rental rates from $150 to $250 in part to pay for cleaning to meet covid-19 sanitation standards.
The social hall looked like a dated cabin that needed modernized and brightened up, said Rosina Albanese, the Lower Burrell councilwoman who heads the parks department.
Now the public can see Fisher Hall like it’s never been seen before.
It took a year to come up with a renovation plan that was cost-efficient, said Todd Giammatteo, Lower Burrell’s director of the city’s Public Works Department. The city paid for construction materials. But it used its own public works employees to renovate it last winter.
“When I first saw Fisher Hall, I knew that I had my hands full,” Giammatteo said. The total project cost was a more manageable $8,500.
Another challenge was preserving at least some portion of the wood interior, said Michelle Hatbob, the city’s public works and parks coordinator.
The walls were paneled in rough-cut lumber popular in the 1950s when the city developed the park.
The solution was to keep some of the wood panels but wrap the lower half of the wall with silver galvanized, corrugated sheet metal. Not only does the industrial surface modernize the room, but it provides protection for the walls, which can be wiped down easily, Hatbob noted.
Previously, years of spilled beverages stained the wood, dulling its beauty.
Other improvements include new flooring, new appliances in the kitchen and updates to the bathroom.
For more information and to make reservations, visit Lower Burrell’s website: cityoflowerburrell.com.
