After issuing an RFP back in August 2022, the former Walgreens building at 17 Harnden St is officially off the table for a potential new community/senior center. The Select Board came out of a brief Executive Session during last night’s meeting and Chair Mark Dockser read the following statement:
In consultation with town counsel and bond counsel, the structure of a purchase and sale agreement proposed by the current owner is not something that as a municipality we are able to execute. We explored multiple options to make this happen but unfortunately none of them were mutually agreeable. As such, we will return to the original process of conducting a feasibility study for a new senior center and further discussion on this will be a future agenda item at our next meeting.
1hr53min mark on the RCTV YouTube feed
In terms of what’s next for the Select Board and where things go from here? The board still has a couple of other options remaining: renovate the existing Pleasant Street Center or continue exploring Symonds Way/Oakland Rd as alternatives. 25 Haven Street, the former Rite Aid, is no longer an option as that building appears to have been sold and is off the market once again.
The Select Board’s next meeting is scheduled for May 9th due to Town Meeting starting next week.
