Architects hired to create a design for renovation of Town Hall told the Town Council last week that instead of gutting the building, they want to repurpose the space creatively and efficiently.
Peter MacGovern of Oak Point Associates of Biddeford, who gave a preliminary update on the renovation design being developed by his firm and Lassel Architects of South Berwick, said the Town will receive a list of necessary and possible upgrades, along with price tags for those projects, when their final report is submitted in August.
The goal is “to provide you with a report with a list of priorities of what needs to be done and then what can be done,” MacGovern told the Council at its April 9 meeting. “And each one of those options would be given to you in a priority of how we think they should be handled, and the real costs associated with them.”
They believe the space can be used and renovated in a way that town offices can remain open during renovations, he noted.
In addition, the architects’ proposal includes plans to expand the use of the green space outside Town Hall, given the “evident shift toward indoor-outdoor living” that came about during the pandemic.
“There is an opportunity to provide a better connection to the broader community through a revisioning of the street green,” according to the proposal, which includes funding for a landscape architect.
At an earlier Council meeting in March, Town Manager Tim Pellerin told the Council how pleased he was with Oak Point and Lassel after he had a two-hour meeting and tour of the Town Hall with representatives from both firms.
The architects are working to be “as fiscally conservative” as they can be while still accomplishing the goals of the town, Pellerin said at the time. And when asked by the architectural team about the importance of Town Hall to the public, he replied, “High value – there’s a lot of emotional feeling and support.”
The architects were given a five-month deadline for producing a final report, and plan to have preliminary concept plans to the Council by July 9 and preliminary budget options in mid-July, according to their proposal.
In other business at last week’s meeting, the Council agreed to spend $200 for refreshments and $200 for child care to attract more people to a May 16 public workshop organized by the Downtown Revitalization Advisory Committee.
Offering food and childcare helped to “further engage our community to be active and involved with the downtown” at a similar public workshop in January that drew about 75 people, said Councilor Jessica Cyr, who is also a downtown committee member.
Councilors unanimously agreed to spend $200 on food, about half of what was spent at the January meeting when a large amount of food was left over.
Funding for childcare was approved 4 to 1, with a no vote from Melissa Costella, who said the small number of children who used it didn’t justify the cost. Councilor John James said the cost is worth getting a few more people involved.
