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Selectmen discussion on senior center study returns; motion to add $50,000 from free cash made and seconded
Summary
A proposal to add $50,000 to the capital plan to fund a senior-center feasibility/design study was debated; the finance/selectmen meeting recorded a motion and a second to add the amount from free cash, but the transcript does not record a final vote on that amendment.
Town officials reopened discussion about funding a feasibility and design study for a proposed senior center and briefly debated adding $50,000 to the capital-improvement plan to support the work.
Presenters and participants described two possible facilities discussed previously: a proposal tied to a site known in the transcript as the Toronto Crossing parcel (which was reported to have a private party sign a lease) and an alternative building described as more suitable for conversion. Town staff described the $50,000 request as a design- and marketability-style study to assess infrastructure, accessibility, and the project’s potential to support seniors and broader recreation programming that could generate revenue over time.
Several officials noted the senior-center request had been considered previously and that a Selectmen’s Committee had not forwarded the item onto the warrant earlier in the process. Participants referenced town priorities, including imminent school capital needs, and debated whether the study should be added into the capital-improvement booklet now or proposed as a floor amendment at town meeting.
Near the end of the meeting, one participant moved to add $50,000 from free cash "for use of a design study for senior center," and another participant seconded the motion. The transcript records the motion and a second; it does not record a roll-call vote or final outcome in the provided excerpt.
Officials also discussed demographic context, noting about 27% of the town’s population is currently classified as seniors, and some participants argued that a combined senior-and-recreation use could create revenue opportunities and broader community benefit. Others cited competing capital demands — notably school facilities work — as the reason for caution about adding a new project.
Because the transcript does not record the final vote on the $50,000 amendment, the outcome is listed as not recorded; insertion into the capital plan would require either committee consent to add the line now or a motion on the town-meeting floor with appropriate warrant language.
