COA gets ready to propose names for building committee
By Caitlyn Kelleher JOURNAL REPORTER

Members of the Westminster Council on Aging met on Monday, Oct. 29, with a variety of members of the community in order to pick names for a senior center building committee.

The COA had commitments from COA member Neysa Miller and Walter Taylor to serve on the building committee and now they are looking for other members of the committee. The COA is also approaching other residents in town with experience in finance, law and development to serve as members of the building committee.

"It is good to have someone who knows about building," said Keith Harding, a resident who was attending the meeting.

Don Barry, a member of the planning board, also attend the meeting and pushed the members of the COA to come up with a concrete list of potential members for a building committee as quickly as possible.

Members of the town staff such as Fire Captain Kevin Nivala - who was at the meeting - Town Planner Alicia Alitieri and Building Inspector Robert Thorell, have all told members of the COA that they are willing to consult and advise during the planning process on a potential building.

In a separate interview, Board of Selectmen Chairman John Fairbanks said the board wasn't ready to appoint a building committee but had received some names for the group.

Fairbanks said the selectmen want to see what a hired consultant will recommend for the property 69 West Main St., because he said that will help a potential building committee understand their options.

He added that the existing building on the site must be removed before a building committee can be appointed.

Also during the COA's meeting, Miller, who has sketched a variety of floor plans for the potential building, updated the group about her visits with COA Director Sue Fisher to area senior centers.

They discussed the visits to Lunenburg's Senior Center and to Barre's Senior Center.