Roof repairs start process of reopening Buttonwoods Center
Thanks to the generous donation of Tom Furey and Furey Roofing, the first step to the reopening the Buttonwoods Community Center was taken yesterday morning.
Former Mayor Scott Avedisian closed the center in early 2017, saying the cost/benefit of repairing the roof and other renovations made no sense and the city would be better off selling the property. In addition to housing offices for the city’s department of human service, Westbay Community Action rented space and operated programs from the center. It was also used by a couple of senior groups that met regularly to play cards and socialize. Those groups were given space at the Pilgrim Senior Center.
Avedisian’s plan, however, met resistance from the City Council and in particular freshman Ward 7 Councilman Steve McAllister. McAllister vowed to his constituents he would work to reopen the center, but after meetings with Avedisian, the administration’s stance was unchanged.
It looked like the center, once the Buttonwoods Elementary School, had seen the last of its days.
That was far from the mood yesterday, as Mayor Joseph Solomon was joined by McAllister, Ward 8 council candidate Anthony Sinapi, Council President Steve Merolla, Councilwoman Donna Travis and Councilmen Ed Ladouceur and Richard Corley to watch a crane lift roofing insulation to a crew. The center roof is deceptive as all that can be seen from the ground are its pitched sides.
Ladouceur, who owns and operates a siding business, knows otherwise.
“It’s flat,” he said describing the center roof extending between the old school and its addition. Furey will be installing a rubber roof. The city is buying materials – Solomon said $5,000 has been appropriated – and Furey is doing the work at no cost.
“This is a big win,” McAllister said. He pointed out he has been working to reopen the center almost from the day he took office and he noted that on a recent visit to the Pilgrim Senior Center, the Buttonwoods’ card group were sure to ask him the status of the building.
Soon after Avedisian left and Solomon became mayor, he announced that he would work to reopen Buttonwoods through a combination of donated services and some city expenditures. It was Ladouceur who contacted Furey more than a month ago.
Ladouceur called Furey’s contribution “incredible,” adding, “this is pretty much going to take care of the leaks in this.”
“This is a big win for Steve [McAllister], who has been all over this since day one,” Ladouceur said.
McAllister called it a “big day for Buttonwoods.”
In addition to making space available for community groups, Solomon has talked of moving some of the city offices in the temporary annex on Draper Avenue to Buttonwoods as it is more centrally located and closer to City Hall.
