November 26, 2024 By Carol Britton Meyer
The Center for Active Living Building Committee recently recommended on a unanimous vote the Bare Cove Park option for a new senior center over the Cronin Field proposal. The Council on Aging voted unanimously to support this option earlier.
The estimated project cost is roughly $33 million — including the building, site work, demolition of an existing building, an environmental cleanup, non-Center related site work (park upgrades), and soft costs. Approval by a number of regulatory agencies would also be required because of the site’s park status.
More than 100 people were on the Nov. 12 Center for Active Living Building Committee Zoom meeting for a presentation about the two potential sites, with strong opposition voiced to the Cronin Field option.
The committee earlier ruled out expanding the current Center for Active Living — located at Town Hall — into the adjacent current police headquarters space once the department moves into the new public safety facility on Rte. 3 A — due to parking, space, accessibility, and other issues.
Decision-making factors include site development complexity, configuration and layout; quality of outdoor activity space; vehicular access/traffic; dedicated on-site parking capacity; environmental factors; construction phase impacts; sustainability opportunities; potential abutter impacts; and the projected project cost.
The project architects presented and ranked the different options based on a variety of criteria — the Bare Cove site was a +24 rating, Cronin Field, +12, and the current Town Hall, -12.
The estimated cost of a Cronin Field senior center is $29 million, and according to the recreation commission’s understanding, it falls under the category of protected recreation land.
Advisory not decision-making role
The committee’s role is an advisory and not a decision-making one — charged as it is with conducting a feasibility study on various options and presenting a report at Town Meeting.
The building committee will make a presentation to the select board at their Tuesday, Dec. 10, meeting. Both the board and the advisory committee will weigh in during the process, with plenty of opportunity for further citizen input leading up to Town Meeting. Details will be available on the town website calendar.
The preferred Bare Cove Park option involves building a new senior center in the general vicinity of the light plant office, the park entrance, and the Bare Cove Fire Museum.
The one-story building proposal includes a patio, gardens, an on-site walking trail, access to the front park gate, lawn areas to accommodate a variety of games and activities, a reception area, large multi-purpose room that could accommodate 150 to 200 people at a time, restrooms, lounge, cafe counter, exercise/dance and arts studios, a fitness room, an auditorium for movies, lectures, musical entertainment and other uses, a conference room, a large room for playing cards — a popular activity — a greenhouse, and other features.
Potential funding sources beyond a fundraising campaign have not yet been identified.
For full details about the Nov. 12 building committee discussion, go to https://www.hinghamanchor.com/possibilities-shared-for-new-center-for-active-living-strong-opposition-voiced-to-cronin-field-option/.
Watch for updates.