ROCKINGHAM, Vt. (AP) – A leaky roof has forced the closure of a section of the Bellows Falls Opera House less than two weeks after it reopened following a renovation.

Melting snow leaked in around a drain and created a three-foot hole in the restored plaster ceiling in the opera house. A section of the opera house was roped off.

None of the new seats in the theater was damaged, said Development Director Richard Ewald.

“It feels like two steps forward and one step back,” Ewald said. “Luckily the damage can be repaired.”

The theater reopened earlier this month after a month of construction work that included restoring much of its historic architecture.

The restoration is part of a $3.5 million project to renovate the whole building, which also houses offices for Rockingham and Bellows Falls municipal officials.

Repair work should begin next year. It’s not clear where the money for the repair will come from.

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Information from: Rutland Herald, http://www.rutlandherald.com/

AP-ES-12-15-05 1809EST