Committee reviews repair estimates, seeks preservation funding for First Meeting House

The Town of Hubbardston Facilities Committee reviewed contractor estimates and structural concerns for repairs to the First Meeting House and agreed to pursue preservation funding while sequencing work to avoid redundant repairs. Betty Ann, who presented the contractor visits and summary to the committee, said one contractor, Groundworks, gave a "verbal estimate of 75,000 to a $100,000" while Erickson Foundation Solutions submitted a written estimate of "$67,000."

Committee members focused first on controlling water entry and identifying the building’s structural needs before undertaking interior treatments. Betty Ann said the crawl space measures about "41 by 63" feet in places and that some areas have less than 2 feet of clearance; contractors recommended redirecting roof downspouts, adding sump pumps and installing a sealed vapor barrier to channel incoming water to pumps. The committee discussed both temporary mitigation and longer-term options, including removing a wooden floor and pouring concrete as seen at another nearby church, and weighed that against preservation concerns because the meeting-house floor is historic.

A member who identified himself as an engineer and who participates on the committee urged that the group "get a structural engineer assessment at our earliest possible date," saying an engineer would set the correct order of work and the scope so the committee does not "treat something that is going to be replaced" by later foundation repairs. The committee discussed the presence of powder-post beetle damage and widespread mold and mildew in crawl-space timbers, and noted that those conditions reduce load-bearing capacity and could influence repair sequencing.

Members also discussed procurement rules and funding pathways. Speakers noted that procurement thresholds have changed (the $50,000 threshold has moved toward a $100,000 three-estimate/RFP threshold for larger contracts) and that the town procurement officer, Travis, should be involved in reviewing large estimates and next steps. The group agreed to prepare documentation for a Community Preservation Committee (CPC) request and to aim for the CPC meeting in early August; the Massachusetts Historic Commission (MHC) application was discussed as a later, more comprehensive step with a March 2027 target for the MHC effort.

The committee settled on a staged approach: (1) prepare CPC materials with the best available estimates and a plan to engage a structural engineer; (2) pursue short-term drainage mitigation (downspout relocation, pumps, vapor barrier) where feasible; and (3) await an engineer’s recommendations before committing to large foundation or floor replacement work. Betty Ann will distribute the Erickson estimate and supporting documents to committee members in PDF form for review ahead of the CPC meeting. The group also discussed modest administrative uses of CPC administration funds for due diligence and the need to avoid substantive email discussion among members outside a public meeting.

The committee took a voice vote earlier in the meeting to approve minutes with adjustments and adjourned after completing the agenda. The next procedural steps are circulating the Erickson estimate to members, drafting a structural-engineer scope for procurement, and preparing the CPC submission for the committee’s presence at the CPC meeting in August.