Council approves $6,500 to plan renovations for Clayville schoolhouse; Conservation Commission seeks temporary office space

The Scituate Town Council approved a $6,500 expenditure from the engineering consulting budget to fund architectural services to scope and cost renovations for the former Clayville schoolhouse.

Cindy San Francisco, speaking for the Conservation Commission and the Land Trust, said the group had been moved temporarily to the senior center while the Clayville building remains unavailable and asked whether the council could provide temporary office space above the council chamber until the schoolhouse is ready. Council members agreed to place a formal request on the next meeting agenda so staff can consider logistics and accessibility issues.

San Francisco told the council the $6,500 would pay for a detailed proposal from an architect that sketches the work needed, sequences the work and produces cost estimates so the town can plan and seek funding. The building would be made habitable for general public use and meetings, with parking and accessibility addressed in the plan, she said.

The council voted in favor of the expenditure after brief discussion and said staff would continue to coordinate with the Conservation Commission and the Land Trust on timing and use.

What happens next: Staff will proceed with the architect's scope of work; the Conservation Commission's request for temporary office space will be scheduled on the next council agenda for a formal decision.