The Community Preservation Committee on Thursday unanimously approved an Annual Town Meeting article requesting $2 million for the upcoming fiscal year for the removal of hazardous material removal from and demolition work to the Center School.

The CPC heard an update on the Center School reuse project. This information was shared with the Permanent Building Committee (PBC) on Tuesday. Discussion prompted the retooling of a proposed article to designate the $2 million request for the first phase of the project.

The total project is estimated to cost $10 million. The Hopkinton Center for the Arts (HCA) is expected to contribute $4 million as part of a public-private partnership agreement. The remaining funds are expected to be requested for subsequent fiscal years, with a $4 million request expected for FY 28.

Center School project highlights shared

The PBC received an extensive review of the Center School’s schematic design Tuesday, noted Dan McIntyre, the PBC chair. He told members that participants believed that performing demolition work and hazardous materials removal first would make the project more appealing to contractors “because of less risk.”

CPC chair Ken Weismantel added that demolition work could be funded with CPC funds because it is considered “rehabilitation.”

The second and third floors are slated to be occupied by the Parks & Recreation Department and the Youth & Family Services Department, respectively. The HCA space will be on the first floor.

McIntyre described the schematic designs as being “pretty far along.” There will be “really no change” to the main historic building, which was constructed in 1928.

A proposed rear annex will include the main lobby and an elevator shaft. This will prevent additional interior work to the main structure.

Questions arise over HCA’s fundraising potential

Member Dan Terry, the Parks & Recreation Commission chair, asked what the HCA will get in return for its $4 million investment. McIntyre explained that negotiations will take place. A long-term lease would allow the HCA to have its space rent-free, he said. The HCA would be responsible for its share of utility and maintenance costs.

“A bit of a challenge” to the long-term lease would be if the town wanted to build on the land behind Center School, Terry said. He also questioned how long it would take for the HCA to raise its share.

Said McIntyre: “If they don’t come up with the money, then the project essentially dies.”

Weismantel added that the HCA can’t fundraise until it has the lease in place.

The architect’s cost estimates are expected to be received in early February, he added.

Pyne Field project faces obstacles

Terry and Jon Lewitus, the Parks & Recreation Department director, spoke about challenges facing the potential renovation of Pyne Field. The plan may need to be modified or withdrawn.

Concerns over safety arose at recent Planning Board meetings. The inclusion of a cricket pitch, baseball field and parking area was deemed to be too much for the space at a previous CPC meeting.

Lewitus said he will present the plan to the Planning Board on Monday and explain the situation. He noted that the board was waiting to receive feedback from a peer review consultant. Lewitus got it a few hours before this meeting.

Straw polls taken by the Planning Board indicated that the proposal was unlikely to be approved, Lewitus conceded. Any decision to revise the plan would need to be voted on by the Parks & Recreation Commission, he stressed.

The original request was for $1.5 million in addition to the $1 million received previously. Lewitus and Terry said the amount needed to be increased to $1.8 million for FY 27. Money would come from the recreation reserve and the undesignated reserve.

Weismantel proposed a second article for the Pyne Field project. It would allow Parks & Rec to use the remaining $800,000 of the previous funding to scope out other locations for either the cricket pitch or the baseball field. It also would fund a engineering study.

Two properties Weismantel suggested for the baseball field are behind Center School and the Carbone’s Restaurant site. Members also expressed a desire to build the cricket pitch due to public demand.

After discussion, the first proposed article was approved in a 5-3 vote. Members Jim Ciriello, Steve Levandosky and Beth Malloy voted against it. Ciriello referred to the amount of the project as “crazy” before the vote.

The second article was approved 7-1, with Malloy the sole opponent. The votes were taken with the understanding that one request could be withdrawn in January after more information is received.

Weismantel will go before the Capital Improvement Committee (CIC) on Monday to explain the project’s constraints.

Other proposals approved; DPW request shot down

The committee voted to approve all but two of the proposed funding requests. The major one it nixed was a Department of Public Works request for $37,500 for a conceptual design for parking and area improvements to Ice House Pond in a unanimous vote. A historic train station building is located there.

The board voted unanimously to approve funding requests for the following projects to go before ATM:

• $25,000 from recreation reserve for benches at the Town Common, Sandy Beach and the Hank Fredette Skate Park requested by Parks & Rec. Picnic tables also are planned for Sandy Beach.
• $250,000 from the recreation reserve requested by Parks & Rec for lighting at the pickleball/tennis courts at Fruit Street.
• $25,000 from the historic preservation reserve for the restoration of the library’s Ellsworth Conference Room floor.
• $10,000 from the historic preservation reserve for the restoration of the limestone at the entrance to Town Hall at 18 Main Street.

In addition, the CPC approved a $20,000 request from the Cemetery Commission from the historic preservation reserve for headstone preservation at town cemeteries in an 8-1 vote. Vice chair Eric Sonnett voted against the proposal.

The CPC also approved three placeholder requests from the Open Space Preservation Commission for the potential purchase of properties for open space use. They are in various stages of negotiations.

The potential purchase of what was referred to as the Issadore property was defeated in a unanimous vote due to an apparently unwilling seller.

The next meeting is scheduled for Jan. 22.