Town Officials Show No Appetite For Senior Center Addition, But Want Better Cost Estimate For Renovations

CHATHAM – The select board wants to take a closer look at a package of renovations designed to improve the usability of the Center for Active Living on Stony Hill Road and to refine a preliminary cost estimate of $3.7 million.

But one thing’s clear: the board has no appetite for pursuing a $7.6 million plan that would include an addition to the building for a dedicated adult day center.

The board voted unanimously Tuesday to ask architect Kurt Raber to make his final report based on a package of improvements presented as Option 1B, which would remove the obstructive columns in the basement and first floor multipurpose rooms, setting aside space for an adult day program in the basement. The plan also includes a dormer that would add usable space to some of the rooms on the second floor. It would also restore the building's front entrance with a reconfigured lobby and administrative area. The second floor would also be somewhat reconfigured to improve usability and efficiency.

The plans were a revision of those presented to the board in March, when Option 1B also included a 10-foot addition to enlarge the first floor multipurpose room. At the time, this option was estimated to cost $3.3 million. The newest revision, without the small addition, has an estimated price tag of $3,680,500. Raber said the cost adjustments came after his team reviewed recent bids for nearby municipal projects, with cost increases in electrical, climate control and other trades.

“We feel like these numbers are more well tuned,” he said.

Option 2, which included a full addition for an adult day center, was previously estimated at $6.5 million, and now stands at $7,580,700. While the plans are nice, select board member Cory Metters said, “I do not believe the voter support is there,” he said. Pursuing that option would represent “a waste of our time and energy,” he added.

“It isn’t worth spending that kind of money on this building,” board member Dean Nicastro said.

Option 2 “would never pass in the town of Chatham,” council on aging board chair Pat Burke said. But the package of renovations “would at least get us something functional” with room for an adult day program in the basement, she said.

“We listened when the town said that they didn’t want to build a new building,” Community Services Director Leah LaCross said. The designs Raber has produced were made in close consultation with the senior center staff, and Option 1B “captures absolutely everything that we need right now,” she said. While there will likely be talk of how to further cut the cost of these renovations, “this is really what we need, and respectfully ask for,” LaCross said.

Resident Debbie Hagen said she uses the center for active living’s programs regularly. “The women and men who work there every single day need a building that is commensurate with what they are doing for the seniors in this town,” she said. She urged that town officials, regardless of the package of improvements they pursue for the building, do better public outreach so that voters understand the need.

Many of those who oppose spending on the project “have no clue what’s happening at the senior center,” she said. “We are never going to get anything passed if we don’t start addressing that piece of the puzzle,” Hagen said.

Select board members said they were eager to have more definite cost projections for the work, and Raber said he would focus the remaining time available in his contract to refining figures for Option 1B. The board asked Town Manager Jill Goldsmith to identify funds that might be used to advance the conceptual plans to more detailed designs, which could be used to yield more accurate cost estimates.