Officials say contaminated paint on the floor of an old armory in St. Johnsbury could derail plans to convert the building into a museum of local artifacts.
A report done for the St. Johnsbury History and Heritage Center determined the paint on the concrete basement floor contains levels of PCBs that are 100 times the allowable level.
Board member Bob Desrochers says it’s bad news.
The center plans another study to determine the extent of contamination.
In December, town officials approved the $1 lease for the building with an option to buy. The decision on whether the center could buy the property depended on the results of the study that found the contamination.
The museum could display some items that used to be displayed by the Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium.