Adams Selectmen Reconsidering Middle School Reuse Plan

Youth Center Vice President Edmund St. John IV presented plans the nonprofit has for the former Middle School but selectmen said they are awaiting cost estimates for repairs before they can agree to a lease.

ADAMS, Mass. — The cost to repair the former Memorial Middle School for reuse has led the Selectmen to reconsider the plan to lease it to the Youth Center and saucemaker Ooma Tesoro's.

The town had entered negotiations to lease space in the school for those two entities while it develops a long-term plan. However, engineers have looked at the building and say the town will need to invest in the roof, heating system and some of the building envelop just for the short-term usage.

"The intersection we are at is whether it is cost effective to put someone in there," said Town Administrator Jonathan Butler on Wednesday, when the board heard a presentation from the Youth Center asking to finalize the lease. "The building is in worse condition that we thought."

The Selectmen are now awaiting cost estimates to decide the course of action but say they can't support having taxpayers pick up the tab for a costly repair. They cited an array of projects the town is already embarking on and the debt exclusion for the Hoosac Valley Middle and High School which will hit the tax bills next year.

"I would have had hard time justifying taxing people out of their houses to do [the repairs]," Selectman Richard Blanchard said.

However, it leaves the board with the dilemma of the Youth Center. The town has looked for developers interested in taking the building but when that failed, the Youth Center "stepped up," according to Butler, and came in with a viable plan. The town entered lease negotiations with the nonprofit last year.

Meanwhile, the town is already preparing to sell the former Community Center on East Street, where the Youth Center currently operates. The center has grown so much recently that its need a new location in order to continue growing.

"The time has come for us to move. We are expanding," Youth Center Vice President Edmund St. John IV said.

But none of their expansion plans will be possible if they do not find the right facility. The school already has a gymnasium and auditorium to help with that. Additionally, the center would pay for the utilities and make the building "revenue neutral" so the town would not be stuck paying to preserve it while developing a long-term plan.

"We intend to fully pay for how we want to see the inside of the facility to look," St. John IV said.

While the Selectmen "fully support" the Youth Center and encourage its expansion, members all said the decision will come down to the cost.

"I 100 percent support the Youth Center and their activities," Selectman Arthur "Skip" Harrington said, but adding that he, too, has concerns with the cost of reuse of the building..

Chairman John Duval said if the middle school does not work out, the town will work with the center to find another suitable spot.

"We have to continue to invest in our youth," Duval said, citing a lack of things to do for young people. "We've got to find a viable location."

Butler said he hopes to have cost estimates on the school soon for the Selectmen to make a decision.

Adams Housing Authority Rededicates McAndrews Community Center

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
05:30PM / Saturday, May 18, 2024

The new dedication sign includes the names of the first director and board chair of the Housing Authority. 

ADAMS, Mass. — It started with changing out the old box lights in the community room at Columbia Valley.

 

It ended with fully refurbished room along with a refreshed kitchen and ladies room. 

 

Residents of the senior living facility gathered in the new community room on Wednesday to rededicate it to James McAndrew and welcome Housing Secretary Edward Augustus.

 

"This room hadn't been touched since the 1980s," said Adams Housing Authority Executive Director William Schrade, describing it as a place to gather that "wasn't friendly, wasn't smiling." 

 

So first came the box lights, and then in consultation with maintenance chief Matthew Puricelli. Then it was replacing the old leaky windows, and why not take off the old wallpaper and paint, and if you're doing that, might as well pull up the old carpet and put down a new one. 

 

"We thought we were done. I said kitchen really needed to be done because they has a 1970s look," said Schrade. "[Puricelli] took charge of that, too, and got creative and with the tools that were given to him.

 

"He knocked it out and then made the worst mistake and said, 'I've done all this I might as well finish and do the women's bathroom.' I said I think that's a great idea. [Secretary Augustus] is coming in three weeks, so you're gonna have to jump on this."