By Greg Abazorius
When the Senior Center Exploratory Committee (SCEC) appeared before the Board of Selectmen on June 23, three new sites were added to the list of possible senior center locations. Tonight, Chairman John Bulian wanted the Stephen Palmer Center to be considered and it unleashed a barrage of verbal combat.
Selectman Denise Garlick, who is also a member of the SCEC, spoke before the board Tuesday evening to state that her committee was working feverishly toward the goal of recommending a site.
"It's certainly a big task, but we're on track and should have good information coming in," she said.
Immediately after Garlick finished speaking, Bulian related his desire to have the Palmer site, which houses both the current senior center and private residents, "put into the matrix. I know there are housing complexities and that there are apartments there, but every site we've looked at has complexities."
Already considered were the Greene's Field site, Rosemary Lake and Ridge Hill. On June 23, Selectmen voted to add the Emery Grover Building, the Needham Heights MBTA site and the Wingate property. To introduce a new property three weeks later, said Garlick, would jeopardize the SCEC's timeline.
"I find it very interesting that you bring this up without any advance notice," she directed at Bulian. "The SCEC was barred from examining this building as a result of a prior Selectmen vote. There are not just apartments in that building; there are 28 families."
Garlick went on to state that because the Town did not own the land, nor was the current lease up anytime soon, the only way to gain control of the property for a senior center is through eminent domain, a process Garlick referred to as a "very lengthy and complicated process," one she believes would further delay a new center.
"The way you've introduced this tonight is putting another roadblock in the way. I'm actually stunned you bring this up. I see it as a clear obstruction of the process," Garlick stated.
Bulian was quick to clarify that the tenants in the building are there under their own free will. Should the Town purchase the building outright, the tenants would have to vacate within 30 days. Eminent domain, he said, offers "far more protection."
Bulian added that the Town is currently spending $10,000 to look at the Emery Grover site, while the status of both Wingate and Needham Heights are completely up in the air.
"I introduce Stephen Palmer now to expedite the timeline," he said. "Adding it now is not unreasonable."
The two selectmen went back and forth regarding Bulian wanting to discredit the other sites before a recommendation is put forth by the SCEC. Bulian adamantly denied the charge, while Garlick stated that six sites were "sufficient" and to let the SCEC "do our work."
Selectman Jerry Wasserman, himself a proponent of examining the Palmer site, agreed that there are complications involved in the site, but that he senses people in town want answers regarding the site in the form of a proper examination.
"We have to look at all of the downtown sites and this is one of them," he said.
Selectman Dan Matthews told the board that he shared Garlick's reservations regarding tenant evictions and that the prospect was not "attractive" to him. Meanwhile, Selectman Moe Handel stated that he was not "adverse to SCEC looking at the issue. I think it's a legitimate question."
Bulian added that he was "not sure if I would even support a senior center at the (Palmer) site now, but I think it's reasonable to apply the same work to that site as others."
Garlick insisted that the SCEC does not take any site lightly and to simply add one this late in the game would disrupt the timeline.
"I see this as an obstruction of the process," she said. "I see it no other way."
After a lengthy and spirited discussion of the SCEC's progress, Bulian created a motion that the Stephen Palmer Center be considered as a site.
"I'm not looking to obstruct or delay. There were sites that that were previously excluded that the board now wants to look at," he said, citing Grover and Wingate. "We're still at a crossroads. Are we really ready to make a recommendation?"
Garlick asserted that the Board of Selectmen does not make a recommendation, but rather votes on one. Should the board decide to veto whichever site the SCEC chooses, then decisions would be made from that point on, she said, but she hopes that the committee can complete the work before them without having additional projects added to their plate.
"We can't keep throwing things in here to prolong the decision. We have already looked at every single blade of grass in this town to find a site," she said. "Respect the committee appointed and let us do our work. The senior center delayed is the senior center denied."
Wasserman furthered his belief that all possibilities should be considered, including the Palmer site, adding that problems with the examination process in the past may have led to delays.
"If there's a delay in the timeline, then it was the cursory way other sites were looked at," he stated.
A vote was taken on whether to incorporate a feasibility study of the Stephen Palmer site and it passed, 3-2, with Bulian, Wasserman and Handel voting in the affirmative.
