The Town of Hunter is laying the groundwork for a new Town Hall and Highway Department facility, a project still in its early stages.
Town officials are working with Greta Hansen, principal architect at Wolfgang & Hite LLC, a New York-based architecture and design firm, to explore potential options. Hansen and the Town Board are just beginning the multi-year project, and cost and size estimates are still preliminary.
Hansen presented several possibilities at last month’s Town Board workshop, including renovating the existing building. The current facility houses offices for Town Justices, the State Police, the Town of Hunter Police, the Highway Department, the Planning Board, the sole assessor, finance officer, secretary to the Supervisor, the code enforcement officer, and more.
Town Councilman Ray Legg expressed doubts about renovating the current Town Hall. “I don’t think that’s feasible. This place is a disaster,” he said. Legg, who runs Boardwalk Builders, a local construction company, previously helped renovate the building’s front facade. Hansen acknowledged that preserving the existing structure is technically possible but unlikely to save costs.
One option under consideration is constructing a multi-million-dollar facility on a nine-acre parcel owned by the Town. The project would include a new highway garage with multiple bays, a new Town Hall, and a community emergency shelter. The highway garage could also house bays for the Hunter-Tannersville Central School District buses and town vehicles.
Town officials are also considering incorporating space for the Village of Tannersville and Haines Falls Fire Districts if they agree to merge. Supervisor Sean Mahoney emphasized the importance of keeping the new Highway Department near the potential shared fire district’s trucks and equipment for safety reasons.
If the fire districts merge, they would need to secure their own funding, as they are separate from the Town and have their own line item on residents’ tax bills.
The current Highway Department, located behind the Town Hall in a large tubular metal building constructed in 1959, is in disrepair. Originally a bowling alley, the space has been described as an “antiquated Frankenstein” due to its interconnected structures and numerous issues. Hansen noted that exhaust fumes seep into the Town Hall, the site has flooding issues, and the space is too tight to load trucks properly. “There’s not enough heated space to park the trucks. These myriad concerns are the biggest piece of the project,” she said.
Working with Town Highway Superintendent Bob Blain and Lamont Engineering, Hansen estimated that the new highway garage would need between 14,000 and 24,000 square feet. One plan proposed a 24,000-square-foot structure, with 6,000 square feet designated for cold storage. Cost estimates range from $10 million to $15 million for the highway department, Town Hall, and community emergency shelter.
Supervisor Mahoney noted the possibility of using the lawn and strip of road in front of the current Town Hall between Route 23A and the building. “If it helps us, we should use it,” he said, adding that he envisions incorporating existing stone sculptures into the new Town Hall design.
Hansen’s team is charting office space needs for the new Town Hall and examining similar municipal facilities. “Some are good examples, and some are bad,” she said. This will help them determine the necessary square footage.
Wolfgang & Hite is partnering with Cobleskill-based Lamont Engineers, which has extensive experience designing highway garages. Hansen cited several recent projects, including a new Town Hall in Athens, with costs ranging from $2 million to $15 million. She acknowledged that rising construction material costs are a factor in budgeting, but emphasized that the examples were only illustrative as the process has just begun.
To offset expenses, Mahoney applied for a $1.25 million Local Government Efficiency Grant from the New York State Department of State. The grant, which includes the HTC school district, the villages of Hunter and Tannersville, Greene County, and the Town of Hunter, would fund planning for the community center/emergency shelter, but funding is not guaranteed. Village of Tannersville Trustee George Kelly, who attended the meeting, called for more Village involvement in future discussions.
The Town has $2.25 million in pending grant applications. Additionally, the Village of Tannersville may sell its Department of Public Works (DPW) building through a New York City Department of Environmental Protection flood buyout program, potentially raising $300,000. Relocating the DPW from the floodplain could make it eligible for additional funding from the Catskill Watershed Corporation.
The project will require voter approval. “There is going to be a bond — and that bond will likely be significant,” Mahoney said. “Our job is to find the most responsible way to structure this financially for our taxpayers, present the plan, and let voters decide.”
The Town Board and Hansen favor constructing a new complex on the nine-acre parcel rather than renovating the existing structures. Hansen noted that the adjacent EMS building, recently renovated, is not currently part of the project.
Mahoney stressed the project’s urgency. “We’re painted into a corner. We have to do something here. This is a ticking time bomb,” he said. “It’s the can that’s been kicked down the road for years, and we’re finally picking it up.”
Max Oppen is a contributing journalist. Send correspondence to reporting@theoverlooknews.com.