Trustees direct advisory committee to prioritize community-center repairs, rentals and revenue steps

Advisory committee members and staff presented a prioritized "action chart" laying out short-, medium- and long-term improvements for the community center. Committee member Jen said the stage and the facility’s rental equipment were high priorities because they affect marketability and revenue: "The stage is a huge one for us... a rental asset; it increases the value of people wanting to use the place," an advisory member said. Trustees agreed the committee should provide cost estimates for the October budget workshop.

Specific items discussed included replacing or repairing the stage to remove safety and liability risks, assembling a modest kitchen rental kit to avoid one-time shoppers, updating thermostats and considering a tiered rate structure to make local use cheaper while charging external users more. Staff noted constraints: grant match obligations limit new grant applications until existing matches are closed and the town aims to reach a break-even baseline for the center before adding major new expenditures.