BIDDEFORD —  On most days, the rectangular hall of the Rochambeau Club is set up with rows of tables and chairs. But come Nov. 2, the room will look very different as voter registration tables and voting booths take over the hall.

One result of the Biddeford High School renovation is that the Steve White Gym won’t be available as the polling place for elections, through 2012, for residents living in wards 6 and 7.

When City Clerk Carmen Lemieux learned that the gym wouldn’t be an option, she approached the Rochambeau Club with a request to use it as an alternative polling place. Under an agreement with that organization, the city will pay $200 per election to rent the hall, which is located at 339 South St. The fee basically covers heat, maintenance and other costs that the club will incur to host the elections, said Lemieux.

The organization agreed to the arrangement, said Don Anastasoff, a Rochambeau Club member, because it likes to help out the city when it can.

Having the polling place there shouldn’t affect members, he said, since the hall is empty during week days and weeknight activity is usually light.

Most of the club’s 300 spaces will be available for voters to park in and the availability of ample parking is a significant benefit of holding the election at the Rochambeau Club, said Lemieux.

“Parking was always an issue” when elections were held at the high school, said Lemieux, since school was in session during the day and often there were activities on site at night. At times, there were even activities in the gym interfering with election activity, she said.

The high school “is not convenient and it’s not very functional,” said Lemieux.

The Rochambeau Club members “have been really great to work with and very accommodating,” she said.

The only cause of concern in moving to a new polling place, said Lemieux, was the length of time it took to get approval from the state. She said she didn’t receive approval until earlier this month.

The main issue with which the state is concerned is making sure polling places are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, she said.

Anastasoff said that the building is indeed ADA compliant.

If all goes well this Election Day, and an agreement can be reached with the Rochambeau Club, Lemieux said she would be interested in moving the polling place for Wards 6 and 7 to the South Street venue permanently.

The city’s two other polling places for the five other wards will remain the same this year. The polling place for Wards 1 and 2 is located at the Public Access building, formerly the Knights of Columbus building, on Pool Street, next to Westbrook Skating Rink. Residents of Wards 3, 4 and 5 can vote at the J. Richard Martin Community Center at 189 Alfred St.

All three polling places in Biddeford will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 2.

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 324 or dmendros@journaltribune.com.