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Date: 12/27/2023
LONGMEADOW — The Select Board voted to approve the use of $1.4 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds. The vote came after the Permanent Building Committee reviewed the feasibility study on consolidating town offices at the Greenwood Center and opposed the plan on Dec. 18.
Two options were identified as possibilities after the feasibility study. The center could undergo a basic “facelift” using the ARPA funds. This option would replace the carpeting, repaint the walls and use modular furniture.
The other option is an “enhanced” renovation, with new paint, flooring and ceiling. The eight departments would each have an entryway with a transaction counter separated from the rest of the office by a door. Office cubicles would be separated by floor-to-ceiling walls and there would be a small meeting area in each office. Two larger conference rooms would be included, as well as restrooms and a breakroom for town employees. The price tag for this option is $4.55 million.
The Select Board had already discounted a middle-of-the-road, basic renovation. As Select Board member Mark Gold had stated during the Nov. 20 Select Board meeting, “Do it once, and do it right.”
Writing a memo on behalf of the committee, Chair Mary-Beth Bergeron expressed “serious reservations” about whether a debt override for the project would be approved at Town Meeting with the middle school project funding on the horizon.
“If the town were to spend between three and five million dollars, the space would still not have the appearance of Longmeadow Town Offices,” Bergeron wrote. Instead, she suggested renovating the “stately” Community House.
The Long Range Plan Steering Committee also issued a memo upon request of the Select Board. Acknowledging that the project is out of its purview, the committee suggested that Select Board keep climate mitigation, social equity and accessibility and the preservation of the town’s character in mind as it moves forward. It also suggested the board consider senior housing as a future use for any empty town buildings.
Gold said the feedback he had received from residents since the Nov. 20 meeting was against moving the town offices from the “middle of town,” near the Town Green. After touring the Community House, however, he said renovation of the building would take “real money,” in the range of tens of thousands of dollars.
Select Board member Josh Levine said that he had been “over awed” by the feasibility study presentation, but upon further consideration said the character of the town is important to Longmeadow residents. “It would be a shame to leave [the Community House] — a big, beautiful building that needs a little work on the inside — empty in the middle of the town,” he said.
Select Board member Dan Zwirko agreed, recalling Gold’s words about “doing it right.” He said he preferred the facelift at Greenwood, after which the town could find a way to bring the offices back to the area near the Green. He asked for the input of the taxpayers.
Select Board member Vineeth Hemavathi said, “It’s not a slam dunk” that a full renovation would pass at Town Meeting, considering the other projects that the town must fund in the near future He said he was struck by how many town buildings are unused or underutilized and said the town needs to have bigger conversation about building usage.
“Our history is on the Town Green and that’s where our town hall should be,” Lachuisa said.
June 11 was set as the date for the town election. Lachiusa announced that he will not be seeking another term when his ends in 2024. He said his work has been requiring him to leave the state approximately four times per month and he can no longer dedicate the time needed for the select board position. Hemavathi thanked Lachiusa for his eight years of service and his advice and friendship.
The town is seeking citizen petition articles for the May 14 town meeting. Petition articles are due at 4:30 p.m. on Jan. 29, 2024. Requirements and the form for submitting a petition article can be found at tinyurl.com/4kaystsb.