$8M Senior Center Renovations Aim For Spring Completion

Arlington MA

18 January, 2021

5:27 PM

Description

Your Arlington Last Updated: 18 January 2021 Written by Town news release The major renovations at the Senior Center/Central School building, at 20 Academy /27 Maple, are expected to be completed in late spring. Begun last spring after Town Meeting appropriated more than $8 million, the project has three goals: Develop a modern, expanded space on the ground and first floors dedicated to the Council on Aging, Arlington Senior Association, and community events and activities; Improve major building systems, including HVAC, electrical, restrooms and the building exterior; and Relocate the Health and Human Services Department, including Veterans' Services from Town Hall, to renovated space on the 2nd floor. The building will also become fully accessible and compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The project is expected to be completed in late spring 2021. Planning began in 2015 Planning for the renovation began in 2015, when the town created the Central School Feasibility Study Group and then hired Sterling Associates Inc. Architects to conduct a feasibility study. The study group was composed of representatives from Health and Human Services, Arlington Redevelopment Board, town manager's office, Arlington Senior Association, Council on Aging and Capital Planning Committee. The study reviewed existing building conditions, considering current and projected programming in the building, and provided general specifications, drawings and estimated construction cost. Public input and dialogue on the feasibility study was held over 2016 and 2017. In 2017, after two separate requests for proposals, the town hired Vertex as the owner's project manager, followed by Sterling as the architect to design plans that were responsive to the issues identified by the feasibility study. The Redevelopment Board maintains jurisdiction over the property as part of its urban-renewal fund started in the 1980s. In 1981, the town oversaw a feasibility study of the Central School building, concluding that it was ideal for social-service agencies and offices. In 1982, a Senior Center Committee reviewed many sites and concluded that the Central School would be the most appropriate location for its center. By 1984, the town designated the Redevelopment Board as developer of the site. Community Development Block Grant, state, and town funds supported the $3 million rehabilitation project. On completion of the project, the 19th century structure, which was once the town's high school, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and added to the Pleasant/ Gray Street Historic District. YourArlington.com has provided news and opinion about Arlington, Mass., since 2006. Publisher Bob Sprague is a former editor at The Boston Globe, Boston Herald and Arlington Advocate. Read more at https://www.yourarlington.com/about.