The main hall at the Senior Center is slated for a remodel later this summer. At their meeting last week, selectmen unanimously approved $56K in bids to install new folding wall panels, a new drop ceiling, and three air conditioning units in the large room at Cordaville Hall.
The money is part of $133K allocated at town meeting this year for capital improvements to Cordaville Hall and the Town House. The money was originally set aside at town meeting in 2006, but wasn’t spent.
The main hall at Cordaville Hall — a building that once served as a church — is a large room with a cathedral ceiling. The plan to reconfigure it includes installing folding wall panels so the space can be split into as many as three smaller spaces. A drop ceiling will cover the existing cathedral ceiling to help dampen noise.
“I assume we’ve addressed the aesthetic issue?” Selectman John Rooney asked when the board was discussing the bid for the drop ceiling.
“It’s a space issue,” Senior Center Director Pamela LeFrancois told selectmen. “We’re trying to make more activity space. With that big room, can only do one activity at a time because of the sound. I wish we didn’t have to ruin the ceiling, but it was the only way to do it.”
Facilities Manager Phil Rinehart said lowering the ceiling would also cut down on heating and cooling costs in the room.
Rinehart told the Metrowest Daily News work on the Senior Center will begin sometime after July.
In other business, selectmen unanimously approved $11K to upgrade the boiler controls at the Town House.
Has there ever been any discussion about allowing other (non senior citizen) groups use this space? There seems to be few free/low cost meeting spaces in town for things like scout meetings, Early Intervention infant groups and other organizations that benefit the residents of our town. The library has some small rooms that do get used. The fire department used to allow scout and other groups to use their meeting room but has stopped or at least scaled back such use. How do other mysouthborough.com readers feel?