Williamstown, NY -- The old lodge at Camp Zerbe in Williamstown needs a facelift, and Oswego County is looking into whether it should fix up the place. Youth Bureau Director Kathleen Fenlon said the lodge was built in the mid-1940s as a kitchen and dining area for the Boys Club, which owned the camp then. When the county bought...
The lodge at Camp Zerbe in Williamstown was built in the mid-1940s as a kitchen and dining area. Oswego County bought the lodge in 1991 and has used it for storage. Williamstown, NY -- The old lodge at Camp Zerbe in Williamstown needs a facelift, and Oswego County is looking into whether it should fix up the place.
Youth Bureau Director Kathleen Fenlon said the lodge was built in the mid-1940s as a kitchen and dining area for the Boys Club, which owned the camp then.
When the county bought it in 1991, the lodge “was not in good shape at all,” Fenlon said. The county went in to stabilize parts of it and decided to use it only for storage.
County Legislature Chairman Barry Leemann, R-Amboy, said the county has received a state grant for studies to see if the lodge can be fixed or if it needs to be torn down.
Fenlon said the grant is for $45,000 with a $15,000 match paid by the county.
She said the county called for bids to hire a structural engineer who would perform structural, environmental, historical and archaeological studies on the building.
The 2,400-square-foot lodge is a one-story, wood-framed structure featuring large beams and two huge stone fireplaces. It has two rooms — a large kitchen and dining area.
Fenlon said the lodge also has a large front porch that overlooks Lake Lorraine.
Camp Zerbe is a 540-acre park and nature camp used by residents, schools, and scout, community, hunting and trapping groups.
Leemann said people have weddings there, and there is a playground for children.
The 24-acre Lake Lorraine is the largest of three kettle-hole lakes at the park, with access for canoeists and anglers. The other lakes on the property are Ike Allen Pond, which is more secluded and has deep open water edged by a narrow bog, and Edick Pond, a small body of open water surrounded by a bog.
The county Legislature will vote June 10 on whether to move forward with the Camp Zerbe construction project.