Joseph Cormier: Huggins expansion would be a huge win for town

To The Daily Sun,

The Select Board on May 6 voted unanimously to sell the Taylor property to Huggins Hospital. This is an expansion of the present, adjacent Huggins Hospital property. Because of the petition to bring Taylor property sale proposals to the Town Meeting (Article 15), the town voters will have the final say on May 15 at Town Meeting.

Having Huggins expand on the Taylor property is a huge win for the town. There's a new health care type business at 949 Whittier Hwy.; "Aging Excellence". There are pamphlets at town hall near the tax office. The pamphlet expounds on "Wellness Based Elder Care" and "Keep Seniors Active & Independent".

Another new business in town is "For Your Eyes Only"; an Optician type business.

These two new businesses are complementary to Huggins Hospital expanding in Moultonborough. It is incomprehensible that the purchase would not be approved by the voters! How long has the town been trying to do something useful with that property!

Sure, some "wants", by some folks, will be negated; a gym, a community center, preserve another old building (Taylor building). Personally, I pushed for a town green/ town common.. The Huggins deal is so much more town-inclusive, and cannot but help the town's image, and be a town asset for all.

The Heritage Commission has not fought the sale, albeit it is trying a long-shot at getting a $350,000 Covid grant to help reconstruct the Taylor building! Then what? It will take a lot more money than that to make it suitable for public use.

The Lions Club property is still a town asset that must be maintained.. A community center and a gym, especially if spaced separately, and built from lower-cost, pre-engineered steel structures, would allow many to vote yes, especially since the Taylor property would no longer be an option.

There's no need to wait for another petition for next year's meeting to begin looking at options at the Lion's Club property. Steel-structured-buildings companies already have designs and would provide expertise. Site-work for buildings, ... only three ways ... basement, crawlspace, or slab. Why go below ground, when plenty of space above ground!

Please ...not the wetlands ruse again.

Also on the town warrant for town meeting is Article 16: BY Petition: Full Site Study Community Center for $250,000 is "warranted" for the Taylor property; that would be "passed over" because it states the "Taylor property" (cf. RSA 39:2). However, that doesn't mean the "community center" concept is dead. The Lions Club property is still a town asset that must be maintained. I've voted "no" in the past, for building Taj Mahal community centers with gyms. However, if a community center and a gym, especially, if spaced separately and built from lower-cost, pre-engineered steel structures, I'd vote yes. I believe others would as well.

Joseph Cormier

Moultonborough