Williamstown Youth Center To Break Ground This Fall
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The new Youth Center is staying on pace for an October groundbreaking.A contentious debate held the project up from its original June groundbreaking date but planners are now on pace to being construction in the fall.
"Now that the site has been finalized, the design team for the new facility is entering into the 'design development' phase of the project," Youth Center Executive Director David Rempell said in an e-mail Tuesday. "In the near future the Building Committee will be submitting recommendations for exterior materials and elevations. The Youth Center will also share the results of its capital campaign and the future financial projections of the Youth Center."
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The center still needs to work out a lease agreement with the school for the exact land as well as receive all construction permits before breaking ground.
"As the building plans move forward, the Youth Center’s Building Committee will continue to work closely with the School Committee," Rempell said.
The building was originally approved to be built on school land in 2009 based on preliminary sketches of a two-story building. However, when the architects returned with a plan last October, it called for a one-story building that encompassed nearly double the footprint size of the original plan. The changes raised debate, particularly over moving the school's playground.
The final orientation, decided in January, is north-south, which sent the designers back to the drawing board. That location and orientation aligns the center's entrance near the school and along the School Street parking lot.
"The building of a new Youth Center would not have been possible without the incredible support of the community," Rempell said.
