In an effort to gauge public consensus on what to do about an aging town hall, the Oak Bluffs planning board (OBPB) has created a brief survey for registered voters and taxpayers which can be taken online at the planning board page on the town website, or in print surveys available at town hall, the Oak Bluffs Public Library, and the Council on Aging.
The survey is an outgrowth of a public outreach campaign the OBPB began in January, at the request of the board of selectmen. “We are more moving forward with the first question, Do the townspeople want a new town hall? Where should it be? What should it include, etc.” chairman Brian Packish wrote in an email to The Times.
Bill McGrath, chairman of the capital improvements committee, has endorsed vetting existing plans that were drawn up in 2014 by Keenan + Kenny architects, designers of the new fire station. The designers estimated the 20,261-square-foot building would have a price tag of $6.8 million. The plans were approved on a voice vote at 2014 town meeting, then overwhelmingly defeated at the ballot box two weeks later. Mr. McGrath has said that the town can comfortably afford a new town hall without raising taxes.
Oak Bluffs building inspector Mark Barbadoro told the OBPB that the town hall currently has numerous violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and that it is a top priority to bring the building into compliance by year’s end. He estimates the cost will be roughly $300,000.
