Fires could delay Sperry work

Construction on the Sperry Chalet has been humming along, though if wildfires don’t simmer down soon, they could have an impact on the job.

Crews have finished laying a new foundation in the chalet and have put a bottom level floor in.

The chalet was gutted by fire in the Sprague Fire last Aug. 31. Dick Andersen Construction of Helena was awarded a $4 million contract to complete Phase I of the reconstruction, which includes having a temporary roof on the building before winter sets in.

While the long sunny days may have made fire conditions extreme, they’ve been good for construction activity.

The next steps are second floor framing, roof framing, and interior seismic retrofitting with wood stud shear walls, Glacier Park officials said recently.

But getting materials up to the chalet could prove challenging in the coming weeks because of demands for helicopters, Glacier is warning.

“Since the nation is at preparedness level 5, the quantity of available helicopters may be impacted and interrupt their ability to fly up construction materials,” spokeswoman Lauren Alley said in an email last week. “The next big push will be to airlift logs to the site. Getting these logs up to the construction site is critical to continue construction and to keep the project on schedule. Losing the ability to fly logs due to the fires will severely impact their ability to finish the Phase 1 work by the end of October.”

Final floor plans for the chalet have not been completed yet — there have been two schools of thought on the redesign of the chalet. One would be to keep the previous floor plan, the other one would open it up a bit, with rooms that have more beds, like a hostel.

So far, about 100 loads of materials have been shipped to the site by helicopter, with more expected. The flights have been coming in via the Nyack Valley, as to not disturb visitors to the Park.

Crews of 10 to 12 men per shift have been working on the chalet since early July. They live in elevated wall tents that are just east of the chalet.

Next year, the finish work will be completed, along with work on the masonry. The upper masonry in particular will need some work, as the cold water on the hot stone when the chalet was on fire likely damaged the mortar.

Today, the masonry is supported by a myriad of wooden and steel beams surrounding the chalet.

While the area around the chalet is fenced off to keep people out, the mountain goats are still calling it home. On a day a couple of weeks ago, a big billy goat was busy licking a piece of plywood, unfazed by the construction noise going on inside.

The Glacier National Park Conservancy has pitched in toward the reconstruction effort. It’s raising funds in order for the dining hall to be open to feed the construction crews while they’re up there.

A crew of three cooks has been cooking for the crews since early July.

The goal is to raise about $618,000 this year and an additional funds next year. To date, the fund has raised about $373,500. Major recent contributions include a bench that was built from an old bed frame that was salvaged from the chalet that raised $2,600 and a painting by Jennifer Johnson of the chalet that raised $16,500 at the organization’s Backpacker’s Ball.

Whistling Andy Distillery has produced a huckleberry vodka and recently donated nearly $9,000 in proceeds toward the effort as well.