Gilford voters approve new garage for public works, but not ball field upgrades

GILFORD — Voters were able to look past the $11.2 million price and see the need for a new Department of Public Works garage. The article at Tuesday’s Town Meeting asking voters to authorize the funding passed with 67% of the vote, easily clearing the three-fifths majority required for the issuance of a bond to pay for the project.

When it came to another warrant article, one brought by petition which asked voters to spend $500,000 on improvements to the town’s baseball facilities, voters were more reluctant. That article, which required a simple majority, failed by a vote of 425 in favor and 712 against.

The ball field article was the only swing-and-miss on the ballot, as all other measures passed, including the town’s operating budget of $20.92 million, and the school district’s budget of $31.32 million.

In the only contested election, Diane Muller (757 votes), Johnna Davis (780) and Gaye Fedorchak (621) succeeded in their bid to earn three-year terms on the town Budget Committee, while Robert Binda’s 425 votes fell short of earning one of the three available seats.

Voter turnout Tuesday was 18.5%, according to Town Clerk and Tax Collector Danielle LaFond, who described that number as average. In 2023, 18% of voters participated in Town Meeting, and in 2024, 24% came out to vote on the beach bath house and Home Possible Project, two highly contested warrant articles.

Now that the voting’s over, preparation for the public works building can resume at full-throttle, said Town Administrator Scott Dunn.

The current public works garage is more than 50 years old and rife with systemic problems, including air handling and water intrusion. The new structure will be 22,000 square feet — nearly twice the size — and should be safer and more comfortable for those who work there.

“Right now, our design plans are at 50%. The next step would be to bring those plans to 100%,” Dunn said. The committee working on the proposal decided to hold off on paying for full plans until they were sure voters wanted the building. “Once the 100% design is reached and approved, then we will begin the process of collecting bids.”

It’s possible the public works department could take up residence in its new building as soon as 2026, Dunn said. The plans call for the new structure to be built in the same location as the current one, so staff will need to find a temporary home in the meantime.

“We are so pleased that the voters supported this. I can’t thank enough the work done by the citizen committee and our DPW staff, addressing all the questions that came up,” Dunn said. “I think everyone went above and beyond the call of duty.”

Richard Grenier, chair of the DPW Building Needs Committee, said the volunteer group met for four years to work on the proposal. In an interview after the vote, he recalled how in early meetings, he kept hearing from people that projects such as this one never succeed on their first vote, and they should be prepared for a defeat.

That comment got under his skin, so much so that he brought his fist down on the table at one point.

“I don’t want to hear that anymore. If we don’t believe in it, the people won’t vote for it,” he remembered saying. “We need to have faith that the Gilford people will see the merit" in the plan.

He was vindicated on Tuesday night, when the vote totals were announced.

Grenier said the committee looked at every possible solution, including renovating the old building, gutting the old building and using it for another purpose, and building on a new site elsewhere in town. However, once all details were considered, Grenier said, the committee and its members — Jack Kelley, Scott Davis, Doug Lambert, Dale Channing Eddy and DPW Director Meghan Theriault, in addition to Grenier — kept coming back to the same conclusion.

“There was not going to be an inexpensive way out of this,” Grenier said. “There was only one option left.”

He said he felt gratified by the vote.

“I appreciate and am very proud of the work that was done by everyone in the committee,” he said. Dunn and Deputy DPW Director Roger Weeks attended every meeting of the committee, as did the members.

“For the most part, we’ve been together for four years,” Grenier said. “Everything was well-researched. I couldn’t be happier that the committee did a great job, got the word out there, and people listened to it.”

The committee’s work isn’t over, though, he said. It just begins a new phase to “ensure that we build a building that the voters voted for and deserve.” He said he understands the significance of an $11.2 million-project, and that taxpayers have entrusted the town to use their dollars carefully.

“The hard work is starting now.”