Town hall employees will be heading back to high school
By Diane Beaudoin and Caitlyn Kelleher Journal Reporters

Ashburnham Town Hall employees will be relocated to Oakmont Regional High School during the renovation of the Town Hall in a move that should save money and stress.

The Ashburnham-Westminster Regional School Committee voted Tuesday, Feb. 5, to allow the town to use two classrooms in the rear of the school as a temporary set-up during the 15-month renovation period, if the bids for renovations come in on budget.

About 30 people filled the Board of Selectmen's chamber on Wednesday, Feb. 7, during a special meeting of the selectmen to announce the option for the employees. The selectmen did not take public comment on the issue during their Monday meeting, because a fourth option - the high school - had appeared and the details were being worked out.

It is the most cost-effective and the least disruptive of all the choices, town officials said.

Voters approved the money to move the employees during a special town meeting. At the time the choices for relocation were the VMS Building, which would have displaced the senior center; the Stevens Municipal Building, which would have displaced the Fredericks' Historical Piano Museum; or the basement of the hardware store across the street from Town Hall.

"This has been a very complex and difficult issue," Selectman Jonathan Dennehy said at the board's Monday meeting. "We've had lots of public input."

The town will pay the school district a small amount of rent, the cost of installing a separate door - which will replace an existing window - and security measures. But Town Administrator Kevin Paicos said in the long run it is the most fiscally sound option.

There will still be expenses associated with moving the phones and computers, but the hardware already exists. There will also be steps taken to control the flow of traffic, which will increase.

The town will need to adhere to security measurers. All employees will need to pass both a CORI and background check - as all school district employees do already - a buzzer system will be installed at the back of the school where a separate entrance will be used, and visitors will have to sign in and out.

The school committee is drawing up a rental agreement to make all of the details complete.

Westminster town officials have also agreed to the set-up.