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southcoasttoday.com
  • Town to sell property that was to be site of new library

  • ACUSHNET — The Board of Selectmen voted Aug. 12 to sell the so-called Cusson or Severance property at 60 South Main St. originally purchased 12 years ago to be the site of a new library.
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  • ACUSHNET — The Board of Selectmen voted Aug. 12 to sell the so-called Cusson or Severance property at 60 South Main St. originally purchased 12 years ago to be the site of a new library.
    Town Meeting had allocated $60,000 in Community Preservation Act funds to move the old part of the house, a former whaling captain's home, to the former Acushnet Sawmill site. The Buzzards Bay Coalition was going to contribute about $50,000 toward the move and restoration of the building for use as a visitors' center.
    The cost estimates received by the coalition reached $250,000 to $300,000, however, Select Board Chairman Leslie Dakin, Jr., said. He said the town couldn't raise that kind of money in the timeframe sought by the coalition because it would need to go before the Community Preservation Committee, Finance Committee and fall Town Meeting.
    "We are forced from my perspective (with) the unpleasant situation of having to sell (it)," Mr. Dakin said. He said he hopes whoever buys the property will want to restore the whaling caption's house, which dates back to the early 1800s.
    The board approved a request for proposal drawn up by Town Administrator Alan Coutinho that puts the property out for bid.
    Selectmen Kevin Gaspar said they should talk to the CPC about allocating some of the $60,000 for the Severance house move "to seal up some of the Perry Hill Church project."
    Renovations at the church are underway but have stalled due to a lack of funding.
    The church, built in 1851, was taken over by the town by eminent domain. Mr. Dakin said there is talk of using it as an art center or place for scouts to hold meetings.
    The scouts had been meeting at the Community Center, or former Marie S. Howard School, on Middle Road, which the library is hoping to move into.
    The board discussed getting an appraisal for the remainder of the Perry Hill Church project before going to the CPC to request funds.
    "(We should invest in the church) if it's an appropriate amount of money," said Selectman David Wojnar. But he suggested that about half of the $60,000 go towards helping the library with a possible move to the Community Center.
    "I think it's important that we protect that investment," he said of the church, "but I wouldn't be in favor of spending it all there."
    The Library Board of Trustees voted recently to approve a move from the current Russell Memorial Library to the former Howard School. The trustees had received a state grant for a new library/community center there, but while it passed at Town Meeting several times, it lost at the polls.
    Mr. Dakin said although the trustees consider the move to the Howard School less than ideal, they're looking to alleviate their most pressing issue, which is handicap accessibility.
    Mr. Wojnar recommended that fall Town Meeting be the deadline for the trustees to formulate a plan for the move.
    "If they want to move forward and we need an article at Town Meeting, then we can do that," he said.
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