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Meeting Minutes 
April 21, 2021 5:30pm 
Members Present: David Passios, Brian Lehtinen, David Blatt, Michael-Ray Jeffreys 
Members absent: Matthew Allison, Greg Roy 
Architects:  none 
Town Employees: none 
Community Guests: Katey Adams,  Rhonda Lisio, Chris Menard 
Meeting called to order at 5:34pm. 
Public Comment: Rhonda Lisio had questions for the committee. She looked at the floor plans from the 
architect presentation and the numbers were difficult to read. She was looking for the dollar amount per 
square foot and total number of square footage for each category. Michael-Ray Jeffreys directed the 
public to the documents on the presentation on the town website. David Blatt also mentioned that the 
report will be reviewed during the meeting which will answer those questions. Michael-Ray Jeffries 
stated the renovation cost is higher than expected and that is what triggered looking into the price of a 
new build.  
Update from Architect: David Blatt stated we are still waiting for numbers from the Architect on the new 
article. 
Prepare for Town Meeting: David Blatt sent out an idea for the presentation and speaker notes 
explaining each step and slide. The slides were then reviewed together: Scope of Work by Committee 
and Architects, Overview of Present Conditions, Stakeholders and Multiple Layouts. It was discussed to 
remove group/organizations names from slides but include them in the speaker notes. Brian Lehtinen 
asked what the citizens would have in front of them during the meeting. David Blatt stated the speaker 
notes, along with final floor plan, and cost analysis. The slide on priority to maximize space and layout of 
wings was displayed and discussed. Exterior slides and cost estimates were reviewed. Dave Passios 300 
square foot per space bylaw because of the center district and we need to double check the 150 parking 
space is required. Final slide was revisions of the final estimate, with best and final cost estimate at 
$18,376,939 and $334.12 per square foot. Michael-Ray Jeffries stated it would be important to talk 

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about level 3 trigger and where the monies are going due to aging systems. The town will still need to 
invest in this building due to the roof and building systems to keep the building in active use. It was 
decided to add a slide at the end that would include major renovation categories and costs. David Blatt 
will send out a new copy.  
 Review and Approve Minutes: Dave Passios mentioned clarifying description of MSBA, Brian Lehtinen 
approved of the changes noted.  Michael-Ray Jeffries motioned to approve the minutes for April 7th, 
seconded by Dave Passios. Dave Passios, aye, Brian Lehtinen, aye, Michael-Ray Jeffreys, aye, David Blatt, 
aye. 
 
Correspondence to and from the Committee: none. 
 
Future Meeting Schedule: No dates have been determined. Dave Passios stated he was looking to get 
the finance committee a number for tomorrow night. Michael-Ray Jeffries stated the town manager was 
on vacation this week and discussions are still taking place. There was concern that the town meeting 
date is just over a week away. Finance and Select board will have to wait until town meeting to make a 
recommendation. 
 
Public comment: Rhonda Lisio wanted to thank the committee for their work and she doesn’t agree with 
the project due to the numbers. There is not requirement to keep the building standing until around 
2027. She stated the school and town do not need to be in the same building and we do not need all this 
space and for this price tag, and it is not a historic building. David Blatt stated many of the organizations 
will still need the space as they currently are in the building. Rhonda Lisio stated the extended day 
program is self funded and we should not be giving them a renovated space. 
Dave Passios thanked the Fitchburg Sentinel on their story of the history of the Brooks House. The town 
spent $1.2-1.3 million to build the school.  
Michael-Ray Jeffries stated there is a lot of history and an expectation early on that there would be 
community usage and town offices. It came out that Boys and Girls Club needed more space with their 
growing population. We also heard from citizens who wanted community space for not just the young 
and the old but citizens in the middle. There was also a need for meeting space and we heard from the 
superintendent on before and after school programming. The committee had pushed back and looked 
for other spaces that the school could utilize. The result we all heard that they would have to turn 
people away. And the town can reduce costs with these paid programs.  In communicating with the 
community of its needs we found we needed the space now and for future needs. With the $340 per 
square foot, the committee recognized it was prudent to get a realistic number for what it would cost to 
be built new. The town has already asked, would this be the best location, but the logical next step is to 
determine whether it makes sense to build new.  Hopefully at the end of this, the community can make 
an informed decision on what the best path forward is.   
 
Michael Ray Jeffries made a motion to adjourn, Brian Lehtinen seconded at 6:41pm. Roll call vote: Dave 
Passios, aye, Brian Lehtinen, aye, Michael-Ray Jeffreys, aye, David Blatt, aye.