WESTERLY — The former Tower Street School building in Westerly would be demolished to make way for a new, two-story building offering a wide array of services and space as a community hub if a new proposal by the Royce Family Fund comes to fruition.
In addition to ample new gym and recreational space, the new $30 million facility would house a slate of potential community partners, including Wood River Health, the Westerly Education Center, Ocean Community YMCA and others, backers from the Royce Family Fund told the Town Council Tuesday at a special meeting at the Westerly Education Center.
Detailed plans have yet to emerge, but attendees got a good idea of the varied uses for such a shared space, as well as the potential cost to fully realize it.
But while a number like $30 million might typically result in sticker shock, councilors and others were put at ease because the venture would be a public-private partnership with minimal investment by the town.
The latest update on the project comes a year after a public “brainstorming” session of potential uses for the school site.
Royce Family Fund head Charles “Chuck” Royce told attendees, including the leaders of several of the potential community partners, that a group of premier planners has been at work for almost 18 months crafting a vision for the 11-acre property.
“We’ve had a fascinating time and we are very serious about thinking about how this could be best used for Westerly,” Royce said. “The most optimal activity that would be good for all.”
Gro Development, a firm that specializes in the development, design and management of YMCAs and other organizations, has been retained to help determine community needs and assist in developing a sustainable design. The firm, which worked on expansions of both the Westerly and Mystic branches of the Ocean Community YMCA, is adept at securing state, federal, corporate and philanthropic resources.
Consultant Linda Schreiber, who is working with the Royce Family Fund, led the two-hour presentation of work that’s been done to date and the next steps.
“We’re here with a big plan,” she said. “It’s a big, bold new vision for what Westerly deserves and can have.”
Schreiber said throughout the development process the planners used three guides: the needs of people, the kinds of programs that could address those needs, and then envisioning the place where it all would come together.
“What would happen if we can include programming by the land trust, the library,” she said. Community gardens, STEM classes, daycare, literacy volunteer programs and more could be part of the equation.
“Not all of them need massive spaces,” she said. The hub concept would allow for anchor agencies and lots of opportunities for shared space.
Westerly Town Manager Shawn Lacey said a gymnasium and outside recreation space would be a key part of the new facility.
“One of the things we lack in town for all the programs is gym space,” he said. “The spaces we have in schools are limited.”
Because of wetlands on the property, only about 7.5 of the 11.25 acres are usable, architect Meg Lyons said. Lyons reviewed the professional assessment of the building, which she said lacks adequate plumbing and air conditioning, has suffered vandalism and has a deteriorating roof. Asbestos, lead and PCBs are present, she said.
“The building is currently not safe to occupy,” she said.
A new building would occupy about 40,000 square feet — the current building takes up 45,000 — and be two stories. Planners studied several different configurations to accommodate the various program needs, Lyons said. A commons area would serve as the hub for partners.
“It could have shared classroom space for classes that only need it once in a while,” Lyons said.
Work is still taking place to refine the site’s parking, Lyons said, with an idea toward a drop-off area off Narragansett Avenue.
Councilor Mary Scialabba asked if any housing would be part of the project. Lyons said that housing would not be part of the building, but that opportunities for smaller-scale housing existed along Narragansett Avenue.
Gro Development President Rod Grozier gave an overview of the funding process for the proposal.
“The town isn’t on the hook for all the money,” he said. “We can open a portal or valve to funding outside of Westerly, from the state and federal government.”
That public funding would be matched with private philanthropy, he said. Known as a multi-tenant nonprofit center model, it would “liberate” the nonprofits from lease payments for the space and also free the town from having to bond for the work, Grozier said.
“I have been doing this for 30 years and have never known a time when there has been more capital available to communities like Westerly to get things like this done,” he said.
A breakdown of the funding sources shows that about 20% would come from the state, 25% from federal sources and 45% from private sources that fund not-for-profit activities, Grozier said. Just 10% would be municipal or other sources. The town would continue to own the land, he said.
“Those private funders aren’t going to lay money down on a building that’s owned by the town,” he said. “The moment the town’s open to letting go of ownership of the building that sits on the property, that’s when we open ourselves up to other funding sources.”
Use of the building solely as a school ceased following the end of the 2008-09 school year. In subsequent years the School Department housed a few school functions in the building, developed a community center approach, and also leased space to organizations that tended to focus on education and social services for children and adults.
In 2020 the School Committee, under budgetary pressure from the Town Council, voted to stop using the property for school district activities. Tenants were helped to find other accommodations and the property eventually became the responsibility of the Town Council, which took steps to sell it but reconsidered in the face of criticism from former tenants and users and the interest of and involvement of the Royce Family.
The family fund entered into a lease-purchase agreement with the town for the property in December 2021. As part of the agreement, the fund committed to having the property inspected to determine the condition of the building and to facilitate a communitywide dialogue on potential uses of the property.
The lease-purchase agreement runs through Dec. 31, 2023. The Royce Family Fund has agreed to a request by the Town Council not to exercise its option to purchase, attorney Thomas Liguori Jr. said.
Liguori said the proposal as currently structured includes continued town ownership of the land, with a long-term lease through a special purpose entity, as Grozier discussed.
Royce was a central force behind development of the Westerly Education Center, the renovations of the Ocean Community YMCA and the United Theatre and the development of the Washington Trust Community Skating Center. He also played a critical role in the refurbishment of the Ocean House and the Weekapaug Inn and owns property throughout the town, including several parcels in the downtown area. The fund is working on the Tower Street project in partnership with the town, the YMCA and the education center.
“We’re very excited about it,” Ocean Community YMCA President Maureen Fitzgerald said. “We see it as a partnership that’s going to strengthen the community. We’re very supportive of it.”
Jean Gagnier, president of the Wilcox East neighborhood association, said the group was in favor of the concept as well.
“We were faced with a developer coming along and jamming as many houses as they can in it,” he said. “With this, I see a far superior alternative.”
Another public input session is being scheduled for September, the planners said. Ultimately, recommendations will be made to the Town Council.
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