Big Town Project 'Doomed for Failure' At Current Estimates

Selectmen are eying a $7 million and 35,000-square-foot cap on the price and size, respectively, of the municipal complex project in order to ensure the project not only adequately meets North Hampton's needs, but also that the town can actually support the plan in March.
 
Neither figure is concrete because the North Hampton Select Board wants to fully investigate if either are even possible, although the board has set those numbers as targets because estimates discussed Monday project a 41,000-square-foot facility at a cost just under $10 million.

"It seems to me that asking... the town to spend $9.39 million [as currently outlined by one option for the plan] is too much," said Selectman Phil Wilson. "Thirty-five-thousand [square feet] at $200 a square foot is right around $7 million. Going to town meeting with anything more... is doomed for failure."

On Monday during a select board meeting, the North Hampton Municipal Facilities Committee presented estimates and discussed the need to draft a preliminary floor plan for the proposed multi-building Atlantic Avenue campus. The select board decided that night to hire architect Ron Lamarre of Lavalle Brensinger to help design such a plan.

The boards and department heads then worked with Lamarre — who helped the North Hampton Public Library with their proposals — on those floor plans during a special workshop on Wednesday. 

Lamarre hasn't been hired as the architect for the overall project, although selectmen have the power to use his floor plan as a tryout period of sorts for the main job. If for whatever reason the board isn't satisfied with Lamarre's end product, they can seek other architects' proposals while keeping the aspects they like from Lamarre's work.

Town Administrator Paul Apple said Wednesday's session was "very productive" in helping move along a project that is nearing a self-imposed Aug. 31 deadline for the plan's final report. Still, due to that fast-approaching deadline as well as the fact that the town is still aiming to get the municipal complex on the 2014 town warrant, officials are getting a little nervous about their ability to fully vet the project's full costs and feasibility.

"What I’m saying is given that I sit on the [municipal facilities] committee and I keep looking at Aug. 31 for the day my kids go back to school… but also the day this committee is supposed to be putting a report out, I’m getting little nervous," said Selectman Jim Maggiore. "I'm just getting a little nervous because Aug. 31 is coming up."

Lamarre said on Monday that Aug. 31 is "right around the corner," although he believes there is enough time to "pare down" square footages, figure out how all of the pieces of the project "fit together" and fully vet the plan before the warrant article has to be drafted by the end of the fall.

Large strides in some of these areas were made this week, though. Wednesday's workshop helped the parties involved "identify significant items that can be shared" between the different buildings, which will bring reductions in overall square footage and in turn reduce material and furniture costs, according to Apple. 

"For example, everyone but the library was willing to have their IT equipment in the same space given the flexibility of technology that allows effective connection through fiber optic cabling," said Apple in an e-mail. "The [police department] and [fire department] were able to eliminate their respective training rooms in favor of a shared Emergency Operations Center/Training Room. It was pretty cool."