Voters will be asked at a special town meeting 6 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 16, whether the Town should be allowed to use up to $750,000 from its undesignated fund to help pay for what could be increased costs for the Town Hall renovation.
Contractors for the renovation told the Town Council last week about work they did over the summer and fall to bring costs down but could not bring it down to the original price tag of $7.3 million because bids for the roof, elevator and HVAC system were $700,000 more than expected.
With rising market prices and surprises that often accompany renovation of a 100-year-old building, contractors were concerned about the risk of proceeding with the project without more money available for contingencies.
A public hearing will be held 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 9, at Town Hall to discuss the need for more funding that will be voted on at the special meeting a week later.
Town Manager Tim Pellerin in October announced a $300,000 overrun when it was clear that increased material costs, a delay in getting started, and tariffs imposed this year would affect the project.
That figure has since increased to $382,000, Pellerin told the council at the Nov. 25 meeting.
The town’s undesignated fund n0w has $6.8 million, but only $2.9 million is available after what is already committed, plus a cushion kept on hand, according to Jennifer Janelle, town finance director.
“If we run short, we can use the money; if we don’t need it, we won’t spend it,” Pellerin said on Oct. 28, indicating $750,000 would be a worst case scenario.
The plan is to use “not fancy but durable materials” with only minor changes to the original concept that was approved by residents, architect Peter MacGovern of Oak Point Associates said. Project manager Michael Bean of Charters Brothers Construction said they will continue to work with Oak Point to find less expensive windows and acoustical ceiling systems.
Bean also spoke of the risks of delays, such as losing contractors who have bid on the project, shortening supply chain lead times, and deadlines for jobs bid in 2025.
New council member Sam Flinkstrom inquired at length about how the extra funds from the undesignated fund would be dispersed. Pellerin assured the council that all other funding sources would be drawn down before money would be taken from the $750,000 contingency, which would require approval of the Town Council.
Councilor Mallory Cook said sticking with the original budget would result in cuts to the design that would not be aligned with the 2024 taxpayers’ vote.
“Most important for me, (this) allows us to do this right, not cutting corners,” Cook said. “In my tenure on the council we have dealt with a lot of issues that were the result of someone making a cost-cutting decision years ago, and I don’t want to set up future councils with those same problems.”
Additional items the renovation team said they considered cutting from the original plan were leaving floors unrepaired, reusing old doors, and eliminating landscaping and the third floor sound system .
With all these cuts, Cook said, “The project was beginning to not feel complete and not true to what voters had approved. This seemed like a way to move forward while still delivering on the project.”
The council voted to add Flinkstrom to the project team.
