Bow board weighs $500K-plus fixes for century-old town building; agrees to short-term gutter work

Bow Select Board members and the town’s facilities staff spent the work-session portion of their Aug. 12 meeting laying out next steps on a years‑long effort to stabilize and modernize the municipal building and its adjacent parking lots.

Shane Dukes, the town’s facility manager, told the board the recommendations from prior assessments by HL Turner and later work with Du Bois and King have escalated the scope. “If we were to do everything that has been highlighted, we're in the neighborhood of $500,000,” Dukes said, noting the estimate covers extensive exterior and drainage work, possible foundation exposure and underdrain installation.

The building shows recurring moisture in a corner of the basement and persistent surface runoff where asphalt meets the foundation; Dukes said moisture is “musty” rather than standing water, but the site’s freeze‑thaw cycle creates slip hazards in winter. Committee members also flagged that some south‑side parking areas rest on easements rather than town‑owned property, which reduces the town’s flexibility for reconfiguration.

Board members discussed a two‑track approach: pursue inexpensive, immediate measures from the operating budget and start a phased CIP saving plan toward the larger project. Dukes and others described gutters and improved downspouts as inexpensive, near‑term actions that would divert roof runoff from problem areas; Dukes called gutters a “no brainer” and said he can get quotes. The facilities advisory committee recommended completing a lot survey—quotes the board discussed ranged about $4,000 to $6,000—to clarify property boundaries before committing to larger civil work.

Select Board members expressed two consistent themes: they do not want to stop maintaining the building, and they want better cost data before committing large sums. Several members suggested blending the HL Turner and Du Bois & King findings into a single engineering scope so a follow‑on consultant can produce a coordinated bid set. One member said the town should plan to save for the larger project over several years rather than committing the entire amount at once.

The board did not approve a major capital outlay at the meeting. Instead, members agreed to:

• Direct staff to obtain quotes to install gutters and related short‑term drainage measures from the operating budget this year;

• Use available appropriations (committee members reported roughly $65,000 remaining of a prior $90,000 line) to pay for a property survey and initial site work; and

• Ask the facilities advisory committee to draft a combined scope-of-work and to assist with any future procurement for comprehensive engineering and bidding.

Next steps: Dukes said he will obtain quotes for gutters and for exposing the problematic foundation corner, and the facilities committee will help draft a scope for a single engineering package that merges previous consultant work. The Select Board directed staff to include a project line in the CIP and to continue phased planning to reduce winter safety issues while the town saves for larger repairs.