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WEST CHESTER TWP. — Assembling a 126-year-old puzzle 50 feet in the air was relatively straightforward, said a spokesperson for the company that recently reassembled the Muhlhauser Barn roof.

"It went according to plan from the start," said Jack Jenkins, vice president of public relations for The Durable Slate Company.

Replacing nearly 5,000 of the historic barn's slate shingles and centering the Muhlhauser name was completed Nov. 1 using a grid map and old photographs.

The barn, to be used as an event center, is expected to be finished in spring 2008. Interior work is scheduled to be completed over the winter, and a deck is scheduled to be constructed off the barn overlooking the lake. Total cost for the project is expected to be $1.6 million.

The barn is one of three projects under way to restore historic structures in West Chester Twp. Trustee Catherine Stoker said the work is important in a community known for its new growth.

During Tuesday's trustee meeting, trustees took a step forward with another restoration project when they moved to advertise a request for qualifications for architects for exterior renovations for the National Voice of America Museum of Broadcasting.

"We are finally teetering on the brink of doing structural repair, of doing something significant," said Stoker. She estimated the repairs could cost $1.5 million to $2 million, for which local and state officials are seeking grants.

Another township restoration project is moving forward as well, but with a much smaller investment.

The township had maintained the 132-year-old Station Road Schoolhouse since purchasing it for $250,000 in 1999. Its restoration made progress this year, when volunteers from two unions began work on the windows and woodwork.

"It turned out to be a good project," said Steve Wilz, apprentice coordinator for International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District 12. He said the glazing, painting and varnishing work meshes well with his training program.

"It's something you might not see every day, but might need to do at some time," he said.

Township construction projects manager Mike Huxsoll said work by IUPAT and the Regional Council of Carpenters Local 113 has been matched by donations of supplies from local vendors.