Two possible visions for the future of Wilmot’s municipal buildings were laid out at a well-attended Select Board meeting in September. Architect Jay Barrett, who has worked with Wilmot on the renovation of Town Hall, shared findings from his study of the Town’s existing municipal properties and its current and future needs.
In particular, Barrett looked at options for a safer and more accessible Town Office space, as well as a larger and more functional office for the Wilmot Police Department. “The drill was to get people thinking, get them talking, get them debating,” said Barrett, who was paid $3,500 for the work.
The Town currently faces two major challenges in its public buildings. The first, and most
pressing, according to Select Board members, is the space dedicated to the Police Department.
Currently, Chief of Police Duncan Domey works in a small room at the Wilmot Volunteer Fire
Department on Route 11. “He really does not have the facilities that he needs or that he should have by law,” said Jonathan Schwartz, Chair of the Wilmot Select Board. The space lacks a holding cell, evidence room, or even a secure entry.
The current setup could make it difficult to replace Domey if needed, Schwartz said, or even attract another full-time officer, a position for which the Town is currently hiring. “Any future candidate would just walk away,” he added.
A second pressing issue is the setup of the Town Offices. The current building, at 9 Kearsarge
Valley Road, in Wilmot Flat, is “not a safe place for people who work there,” said Select Board
Member Glynis Hart.
The Clerk’s Office, for example, is not protected by bullet-proof glass and offers no second exit for the Clerk, she added. In addition, the building is not handicapped accessible, for patrons or for people who work there, “which is a potentially serious problem for the Town of Wilmot,” Barrett said.
Barrett provided two possible solutions for updating and expanding the Town Offices: one for
renovating the existing building in Wilmot Flat, and the other for a new construction on North
Wilmot Road, across from the Town Hall and Library. Wilmot is lucky to have two distinct and charming villages, Barrett said, and he feels strongly that the Town Offices should exist within one of them. “That’s the face of the community,” he said. “If the Town won’t support its villages, who will?”
The Wilmot Flat option, which could cost an estimated $1.4 million and take about 15 months to
complete, would involve building an addition on the existing Town Offices building. The
expansion could cut into the available space on the Town Green, but has the added benefit of
creating a public toilet that could be utilized during public events on the Green.
The Wilmot Center option, which would cost an estimated $1.6 million and take 10 months to
complete, would create a new building at 14 North Wilmot Road. This would create a sort of
“town campus,” with the Town Office, Town Hall, and Library all in the same location. This location could accommodate a larger space.
Schwartz said that the Wilmot Center option provides an ideal solution. A new building gives the
Town the ability to design the exact space that’s needed, rather than try to retrofit a building.
It would also reduce common confusion among residents and nonresidents about where the Town Hall and Town Offices are located. People regularly follow their GPS to the Town Hall location, when they’re actually looking for the Town Offices, located 10 minutes away. “It would be a lot less confusing and a lot more convenient,” Schwartz said.
The plan has another benefit, he added. The Town could sell the current Town Office building to
the Wilmot Historical Society, “because that’s a perfect spot for them.”
Barrett’s report advocates for creating a dedicated Police Station space by building an extension
on the existing Fire Department. “The simplest and most cost-effective solution would be to make a modest, single-story, concrete-slab-on-grade addition to the existing Fire Station,” Barrett wrote, adding that the facility should have a carport, general and secure offices, a holding cell, and a shower and locker room area to be shared with the Fire Department.
The location on Route 11 is beneficial because of its proximity to the Fire Department and its
relatively central location within the Town of Wilmot, Barrett noted. Schwartz agreed, though he noted that building on the existing lot would likely require the Town to purchase additional land on the site.
Wilmot voters approved $30,000 last March to study what will be required of an expanded police
space. Florida-based research firm Center for Public Safety is expected to submit a proposal for
that study later this fall, Schwartz noted.
None of the options laid out in the report are binding, nor has the Town of Wilmot taken any
action to move forward with expanding or repurposing Town buildings. The study of the Police
Station is the only expense that voters have approved.
To the Select Board and Barrett, it seems clear that changes to the Town building are needed
sooner, rather than later, to create sufficient space for the Police Department and Town Offices.
And yet, “the wheels of bureaucracy spin slowly,” Schwartz said.