ADAMS, Mass. — Town officials are suffering from sticker shock after bids for a new HVAC system at the Memorial Building came in well over estimates. 

 

The town received nearly $490,000 in grant money to replace the antiquated steam system with a modern rooftop unit but bids for the project came in 15-20 percent higher than that amount. Town Administrator Jay Green informed the Board of Selectmen on Wednesday that the plan is to continue forward and find the funding to bridge the gap. 

 

Officials have been trying for more than six years to get the HVAC system in the shuttered school updated but have run up against the cost. 

 

The heating, air conditioning and ventilation system has been described as the "missing link" in preparing the building to serve as a community center or attract developers. 

 

The building has been used on a limited basis since closing a decade ago because of budgetary issues and declining enrollment. The regional school district used it again briefly to house students during the renovation of Hoosac Valley High School. Town officials have sought to market the structure for commercial and community use after taking possession of it in 2012 and replaced the roof with the use of federal funds in 2013. 

 

A report done in 2014 found the building still in fairly good condition but requiring replacement of the HVAC. "The system that is there is original, and it's definitely surpassed its life," Tina Soo Hoo of Arrowstreet Architecture & Design said at the time. "In terms of costs that will be the biggest improvement the building will need."

 

Officials have spent the last several years lining up money for the repairs, choosing last year to apply for Community Development Block Grant funds to install the new system. The town received $490,000 of the possible $550,000 CDBG funds available.

 

"Donna did a good job of assembling a team and we've thrown around a variety of ways to do this. Should we throw everything out and restart? The general consensus was if we did that we would be shooting ourselves in the foot because the longer we wait the more prices go up," Green said. "We decided to move ahead and we're going to do our best to try to work it into the budget process with no significant impact."

 

The total contract is $569,629 and was awarded to Kurtz Inc. of Westfield.