===OCR macOS Vision===
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Also present: Heather Lemieux, Town Manager; Adam Burney, Land Use Director
Others attending: Dave Rodgers, Troy Daniels, Melissa Smith, Laura Brzozski, John Londa, Pat Callahan,
Dave Passios, Tanner Cole, Maureen Dupuis, Michelle Belleza, Kathy Hochard, Ryan Stober, Susanna Jewell,
Anthony Caiozzo, Karen Fischer, Carl Luck, Katie Adams, Doug McQuaid
The meeting commenced at 7:00 p.m. with the Pledge of Allegiance.
Chairman Toale thanked everyone for coming, noting this is the first of several opportunities for residents to
give us opinions, feedback and help us work toward our objective.
There was no public comment from the Board or the public. He did note they had one agenda item this evening
before beginning the charrette.
Malinge Aerative date for Siration Army Tolboth Kundraiser in case of inclement yet, P. Luck
Motion: P. Bertram
To approve the alternate date of December 16** for the Salvation Army tollbooth fundraiser in the event
of inclement weather on December 9th
Vote: All in Favor
Town Facilities Charrette:
Town Manager Lemieux thanked everyone for coming. She noted Land Use Director Adam Burney would be
assisting in the facilitating of the charrette this evening. She reported the Building Reuse Committee was
formed in 2013. Their goal was to look at the reuse and future use of certain town buildings; the Town Hall,
T.C. Passios, Brooks House, Eagle House, Ritter Memorial Building and the old Primary School building. The
Building Reuse Committee dissolved earlier this year. The Board of Selectmen from that point made one of
their goals to look at an infrastructure plan for Town facilities, including buildings and land. This past August
they held their first workshop and had another one in November. We received a detailed report on Town
buildings in September. Since that time we have had many discussions on the buildings including one at the
Special Town Meeting at which seven of the twenty articles was based on Town buildings and land in one way
or another.
A charrette is a planning session where citizens, officials and other stakeholders collaborate on a vision for
development. It provides a forum for ideas and offers the unique advantage of giving immediate feedback.
Participants become included in the process for developing a vision for the final design.
Why are we doing a charrette?
• This is a way to get ideas from the public on this topic
• Increase public participation on the future use of town buildings/land
• All participants will have a voice
What do we intend to achieve?
• To build consensus around future uses of our town buildings/land
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• Envisioning session will utilize a map to draw out your group's vision for town center
• Presentation of Small Group Ideas and Large Group
• Discussion
Adam Burney recommended picking one person to be the facilitator of the group when getting into small
groups so that person will be your group voice when we return to the large group. He recommended taking
notes for the group.
He moved on to a history of the Architectural Preservation District and Village District; both passed at the May
2015 Annual Town Meeting. He explained the color coded zoning map and districts on the wall and handouts to
the attendees. He also noted the listed uses permitted in these districts.
• Town Buildings/Land and the Village District
• How do the Village Center and Architectural Preservation Districts affect what we can do with Town
Buildings and Land?
• Town Hall, Ritter Memorial, the old Primary School, Brooks House, and T.C. Passios all fall within the
Village District
• Status Quo vs. Change of Use for municipal buildings
• Demolition
•
Mr. Burney moved on to a Thought Exercise and asked everyone to consider the following:
Think of a place you like to visit, either to shop, do an activity at, etc. What about it makes it inviting?
Describe what that place looks like and the features that make it a place you like to go to. He encouraged people
to sit with someone they don't know. He moved on to the talking points:
Talking Point #1
• What do you see as the future of the Town Hall, Ritter Memorial, old Primary School, the Brooks
House, and the TCP?
• Can you envision the Town Hall, Ritter Memorial, old Primary School, the Brooks House, and/or the
TCP being used for non-municipal purposes?
• What non-municipal uses would you envision in the Town Hall, Ritter Memorial, old Primary School,
the Brooks House, and/or the TCP?
Talking Point #2
• Would you like to see more town green space in the center and if so, where? Why?
• What types of attributes would you incorporate?
• What activities would you see taking place on this green space?
Talking Point #3
• What amenities/services do you expect to receive from municipal offices?
• What does consolidating Municipal Offices under one roof look like to you?
Talking Point #4
• Are there any town buildings we should demolish?
• If so, what would be the potential future use of the vacant land?
Talking Point #5
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Group #1
• Our buildings need to be more accessible.
• We need to do an assessment of the buildings.
• Sell the Brooks House to someone who is willing to move it.
• It is difficult for the Town Manager to manage individual departments and employees if they are spread
out in different buildings.
• If we do consolidate, consider including the DPW offices. If one Administrative Assistant is out, there
will be someone else to answer calls.
• Various options on the old Primary School Building, whether we can do something with it or not.
We need to find out what is going on with the assessment, if we renovate, can we put in kitchens there?
What is the demolition cost? Have the Fire Dept. do a controlled burn to demo it; save money.
• Ritter Memorial Building: suggestion to place a distillery or a farm to table restaurant;
• Town Hall: an Arts and Cultural Center; there are grants available, what is the cost? Plymouth did this
with their old public library.
• T.C. Passios: Boys and Girls Club, Senior Center activities, Senior Daycare, allowing Seniors to share
their expertise with younger people; i.e. carpentry, mechanics, etc. Utilize the kitchen for farmers,
possibly to supply the farm to table restaurant.
• In order to pay for this, Smile. Amazon.com allows you to set up an account for a charitable organization
where .05% from every sale goes to the non-profit; it could be for a particular building.
• Also, what does the school need for future schools because that relates to whether we sell land or not
even if we have to tear down the buildings.
Group #2
We need to understand how much this is going to cost to make any changes to anything.
• Does it make sense to demolish versus renovate?
• In determining the cost, is it financially viable?
• It is agreed that some sort of renovation needs to happen to the buildings that are there.
• If the old Primary School is demolished, use that space for municipal open space for: fairs, dog park,
farmers market space, bonfires, etc.
• Turn the Ritter Memorial into a farm to table restaurant
• Downtown lacks parking and pedestrian walking safety; the Town gazebo area is very small and in the
middle of two very busy roads. There is no parking there.
• Brooks House: level it and plant a tree
• There were differing opinions on whether to consolidate Town offices or keep them in the buildings they
are in; one idea was to consolidate all into Town Hall.
• T C Passios - turn it into a community classroom/center space, art studios, etc. or a community pool or
offer it up for charter school space for rent. Bring senior citizens and preschoolers together. Bring in a
senior living facility
• A vibrant downtown needs to be walkable and attract people to it with a combination of commerce and
green space
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Recently the Commonwealth gave Agricultural Commissions the right to hold property similar to Conservation
Commissions. They could take over the Ritter Memorial for the farm to table option.
Discussion turned to refining down to options in order to find out the actual costs. It was noted we can't request
cost assessments of ten different options as it is too expensive.
Mr. Burney returned to the Thought Exercise:
Place:
• Stockbridge, MA -it's right off the main drag, has many small boutiques and coffee shops with living
space above them
• Walkable downtown- parking on the perimeters with less traffic in the center; has been enjoying the new
Dragonfly Garden Café
• Small community with art, a variety of shops and places for people to gather
• Concord, MA - bookstores, restaurants, bars, ice cream stores, the National Park, off street parking
• Red Lion Inn, Stockbridge, MA; right in the town center and they have a huge courtyard
• Newburyport, MA - walking areas that do not allow vehicles, playgrounds, gardens, numerous
restaurants with outdoor seating, areas for festivals and summer concerts
• Quaint, walkable and easy to access, a municipal presence to anchor the town
• Big town park -green space that is multifunctional
• Places with interesting architecture, walkable, not much traffic
• Townsend common; easy to maintain and hold events there
• Turner Falls, rural MA
• Sturbridge Village, beautiful historic buildings surrounded by open space
• Destination/landmarks - something to attract people
• Whalom District- circa 1990, walkable and safe, access to things to do
• Places that are bright and cheerful inside and places that are open and fresh when outside
• Places to bring Lunenburg community together
• Architecture
• Sterling, MA - drive through community; Lunenburg is one too.
• Leominster, MA - community based events for residents; summer strolls, cannoli festivals etc.
• Someplace close to major highways and box stores but still having a small town feel
• Rural town feel, architecture, but accessible to amenities outside of town, more walkable
• Western Missouri, tiny town on Missouri river, old and vibrant lots of shops, antiques, stores, bookstores
• Spago, New York, same as above, shops, antiques, restaurants, etc.
• Ayer, MA - sidewalks in front of restaurants and shops, nice town center
• Lunenburg should service the people who live here but the government can't do that, you need
passionate people, whether it's residents and/or businesses; the town center has shifted; we have a
beautiful campus off Memorial Drive.
Mr. Burney stated we need to take what we listed tonight, look for common themes and refocus for another
future discussion. What are the steps for moving forward? It was noted we should have a timeline for the
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Other suggestions were to focus on one property at a time; meet with the National Honor Society as students are
the ones who are most likely to walk around the town center and going to the Teen Center for feedback from
them also.
The charrette adjourned at 8:58 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Elaiiem. Peterson
Elaine M. Peterson
Executive Assistant to the Town Manager