2011-12-19-CPC-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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6.Visitor Center Renovation/Expansion – Ms. Dawn McKenna, Chair of the Tourism Committee commenced this presentation. She was joined by Mr. Colin Smith, architect and Chair of the Chamber of Commerce, and Ms. Mary Jo Bohart, Executive Director of the Chamber. The proposal before the CPC was for $177,731 for design funds for the renovation of the existing Visitor Center. (The CPC had previously established that CPA funds could not be used for design or construction of the new section of the Center.) Ms. McKenna presented a series of slides which highlighted the importance of the tourist industry in Lexington. She cited a statistic from the State which indicated that $50 million in funds came into Lexington during the 2010 calendar year. She also noted that $478,000 had been received from the meals and hotels taxes in the last year. Mr. Smith then presented a series of slides, which showed the proposed improvements to the Visitor Center. He noted that the Center had been constructed in 1974 when the railroad was active, and as a result, did not have a welcoming front to the present-day Bikeway. Renovations to the building would include a welcoming entrance on the Bikeway, increased meeting and exhibit space, and additional meeting rooms on the second floor. Construction would follow LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver guidelines. He said the entire job is presently estimated at $1.6M. The requests for design and renovation funds for the historic section of the building are $177,731 for FY13 and $599,755 in FY14. Mr. Adler questioned the egress to the second floor, and whether there was only an outdoor access to the top floor. Ms. McKenna explained that there will be separate outdoor access to the second floor, (allowing access to the Chamber office and meeting rooms after hours), but that there is also an interior stairwell. Rooms on the first floor can be closed off, she noted, if the upper Chamber of Commerce rooms are in use after hours. David Kaufman, Town Meeting member, asked how the Visitor Center qualified as an historic building. Ms. Fenollosa responded to this question, explaining that the Center is on the State and National Register of Historic Places, and as such, qualifies under the CPA statute. Mr. Kanter questioned when the final Visitor Center Report would be complete. Ms. McKenna responded that the Tourism Committee is meeting th with the Selectmen on January 9, and said that she is planning to have the report finalized by that point. There was a brief discussion of the possibility of the Chamber or individual businesses contributing to the cost of the renovation, but Ms. Bohart, Executive Director of the Chamber felt there was little likelihood that either could contribute. She noted that the Chamber presently covers the cost of staffing the building, and the Town covers its maintenance. 3