MANCHESTER, NH – On Tuesday night, the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen (BMA) approved a request for proposals (RFP) to repurpose the Hallsville Elementary School building with the added stipulations that the façade of the building remain intact and the building itself not be demolished.
Last month, the BMA Lands and Buildings Committee recommended that the RFP be submitted without any restrictions, leading to concerns from the Manchester Heritage Commission that the historic and now underutilized building could be modified in a way that could damage its historic status as one of the various schools built around the city by the Amoskeag Corporation.
The city declared the property as surplus in 2022 after it ceased functioning as an elementary school in 2021. While the building has seen limited use by the Manchester Department of Public Works Parks and Recreation Department, a plan that would have seen Hallsville used by the Manchester Police Department and Southern New Hampshire Services fell through last year.
A tentative plan has been mentioned by the BMA give space in the building for the Parks and Recreation Department and the Manchester Office of Youth Services, but it was determined earlier this year that a an RFP should be pursued to ensure that the city obtains the maximum value possible for the city’s residents.
Ward 3 Alderman Pat Long took the committee recommendation that the RFP go out without restrictions off the meeting’s consent calendar, leading to frustration from BMA Chairman Joseph Kelly Levasseur. For Levasseur, the restrictions were superfluous as the BMA ultimately can deny any proposal it does not like and restrictions could potentially limit suitors for the building that could turn it into something that benefits the public.
“You wonder why people get sick and tired of government,” said Levasseur. “Because you can’t get out of your own way.”
Ward 7 Alderman Ross Terrio, who represents the area where the building is located, says no one wants to demolish the building, but he also advocated that urgency take precedence over other concerns.
“I’m tired of this building sitting there and doing nothing, it’s going to waste and it’s a shame,” he said.
Long said that without restrictions detailing the BMA’s intentions for the building, the BMA could potentially get nothing but bids that would not meet with the board’s preferences, wasting the time of both the BMA and those submitting the bids.
Ward 5 Alderman Anthony Sapienza echoed those sentiments, suggesting that the restrictions could instead be phrased as “guidelines.”
Tensions began to flare between Levasseur and Ward 2 Alderman Dan Goonan as discussion began to hit an impasse, with Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais asking the board to maintain decorum.
A request by Ruais to combine a restriction regarding not touching the building’s façade and another not demolishing the building met disagreement from Long, who noted that a developer could destroy all or part of the building and place the façade on a new building without a clear restriction in place.
The façade restriction passed 14-0 while the restriction prohibiting demolition passed unanimously on a voice vote.