Center for Active Living build projected to cost $29.9 million

HINGHAM – EDM Studio, the Connecticut architecture firm contracted to design a new Center for Active Living building, presented its construction cost estimate and bidding schedule to the Select Board this week after finalizing the design in December. Their newest estimate is $29.93 million for a 25,950 square foot building that would support Hingham residents over 60.

The Center for Active Living, formerly the Senior Center, currently occupies 5,500 square feet of Town Hall, and advocates say the new building’s greater capacity would shorten waitlists and allow the Center to expand its programming options for a growing senior population.

The vote to approve construction funding is scheduled for the annual town meeting on April 27, shortly after the town would receive bids from contractors, according to EDM Studio’s estimated schedule. That means residents will not know the price owed to the contractor until after the vote for approval.

EDM Studio submitted their planning and zoning permit applications to the Town and expect their application hearings to occur this month. The Select Board did not comment on the scheduling of the application hearings after the presentation or how long the approval process might take.

The plan includes an exercise studio, kitchen, classroom and media room, as well as art and conference rooms and a space for Meals on Wheels.

One resident showed her support for the project and reminded the Select Board why some want a new center: “We use the senior center. We would use it more if there was parking, if there was room for the programs, if there weren’t wait lists for things,” she said.

The most recent price estimate does not include the cost of building a new water line to supply a fire hydrant or any repaving and sidewalk construction that would be necessary near the gate to the complex. It does cover construction of 140 parking spots, and the design allocates extra space for expanding the parking lot in the future.

Construction of the building accounts for about $20 million of the estimated cost, and construction of the parking lot is estimated at $6.2 million, according to EDM Studio.

The project would require tearing down a long-abandoned military building, and the town does not currently have plans to remove the building if the CAL construction is not approved, said Town Administrator Tom Mayo.

Detractors of the project say that Hingham should minimize the cost by renovating the current Center, and one member of the public at EDM Studio’s presentation pointed out that this project comes after the construction of two other large, costly buildings in 2025: Foster Elementary School in January and a new police station in June.

“This seems to be the third of huge buildings that are going to be underutilized,” she said.

The Center for Active Living Building Committee decided against renovating the current location after assessments by both the Committee and EDM Studio.

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