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Metal has been collected on 37th Street Northwest for a long time related to the firehouse clock tower project. I know it takes a lot of scrap to make a ton, which is not really worth all that much. However, it appears several dumpsters must have accumulated over time. 

How much has been collected for this long- delayed project?

Watcher: When it comes to the scrap-metal drive held by White’s Smoke, Fire and Water Damage Restoration, Rochester Fire Chief Eric Kerska said one check for approximately $6,000 has been received and another is expected within days.

“The money is still rolling in,” the chief told one of my minions.

The funds will help build a new tower to house the refurbished 1899 bell and clock that once sat near the where the current fire station sits at near the fire station at the intersection of Sixth Street and South Broadway. As recently as Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, Oronoco-based Watson Recycling was delivering an empty bin to the fundraiser location at 3800 West River Parkway NW, which as you note is easily spotted from 37th Street Northwest.

White's staff said the exact number of bins filled is unknown, but they estimate 20 were likely emptied since the start of the year. The scrap metal funds will be added to the more than $300,000 raised at this point.

The community contributions received a big boost from the estate of Alan Calavano, who was also known as "Mr. Rochester Historian.” After he died in 2016, a $100,000 donation was revealed, with the stipulation that it be matched by the community by the end of 2017.

The match happened and work continued, but it was slowed by COVID.

In the last few years, Kerska and project organizers have created a nonprofit corporation to oversee the project and related fundraising, and the Rochester City Council has approved constructing the tower on city property at the intersection of South Broadway Avenue and Sixth Street Southwest, which will place it near the original location.

Kerska said the hope is to break ground as early as this fall, but the timing will depend on several factors amid supply and worker shortages.

He said no dates have been set at this point.

With an estimated $800,000 price tag for the entire project, Kerska said the goal is to reduce costs by as much as half through donations of time and materials from local labor unions, which have already been stepping up.

If the foundation can be put into place this fall, he said the goal is to complete the work in phases. He compared the project to the Soldier’s Field Memorial , which saw increased donor interest once work began.

“The strategy is to show progress and build interest,” he said.

Until then, you might want to pitch that scrap metal that’s been taking up space in the garage and start looking for the project’s website, which is expected to launch soon.

Send questions to Answer Man at answerman@postbulletin.com .