Woburn mayor asks council to allow exploration of 6 Common Street purchase

Mayor Michael Concannon asked the Woburn City Council on a motion to allow him to begin discussions about a possible purchase of the building at 6 Common Street, saying city hall is "bursting at the seams" and the property could provide storage and office space.

The mayor said the request was an early-stage authorization to start conversations and investigations, and he pledged to return to the council for formal approval before any purchase. "At this point, I'm merely asking that you allow me to begin the process of the conversations, the discussions," the mayor said.

Several councilors expressed support for exploring the option. Councilor Campbell said the building is "a really lovely, old constructed building" and that he had regretted not pursuing it when it was previously on the market. Councilor Popolato encouraged staff to consider other unused municipal properties as part of a comparison, citing the Wyman School and Spence Farm as examples.

The council treated the item as a preliminary step: members asked that the mayor and staff produce a space‑needs assessment and a sense of likely cost before any final decision. The mayor said preliminary studies are under way and that the city would look at building condition, potential upgrades, and which departments might relocate.

No purchase was authorized at this meeting; the council approved the mayor's request to begin the review and asked that any resulting purchase plan come back to the council for a formal vote.