Manchester needs a Community Center. Meanwhile, the Ackerson Building sits empty.
The Nellie Ackerson Building, drawing by Aaron Bushaw. The earliest section of the Ackerson building, the “old high school,” was built by the WPA and opened in fall of 1936. It incorporated recycled bricks from the Union School building (circa 1867).
The Manchester Community Schools board of education began debating the closing of the Nellie Ackerson building, located at 410 City Road, in the spring of 2016. At the time, it held the district’s administrative services and preschool program, and it rented space to the Co-op Preschool and Manchester Community Resource Center. Over the summer of 2018, all of the residents, including the renters, were relocated to different school buildings. Since then, the building has been sitting empty.
Meanwhile, Manchester needs a community center.
The Community Resource Center (CRC), after moving out of the Ackerson building, has been renting space from the school district in Riverside Intermediate School. Executive director Laura Seyfried stressed multiple times how grateful they are for the partnership with the district, and space in Riverside. However, they have serious needs that are not being met by their current space. No public restrooms is near the top of the list.
The CRC employees and volunteers, who all go through background checks, can use the school restrooms, but clients and visitors to the CRC can not. This, in addition to a lack of space, has meant that the the county is unable to partner with the CRC to see Women Infants and Children (WIC) clients at the CRC, and the “life stories” social hour for seniors led by the behavior health navigator, Kathy Walz is unable to meet at the CRC. Additionally, Walz meets with clients seeking mental health assistance once a week in the CRC office, which lacks private meeting space for counseling. Other needs include better accessibility, kitchen (or even just sink) access, lockable rooms, storage space and more long-term accessible parking. Currently CRC client parking is in Riverside’s bus lane so the food pantry by necessity, shuts down before the end of the school day.
It is not just the CRC who needs additional space that could be provided by a community center. The Manchester Area Senior Citizens Council, Inc. (MASCC) would also benefit. Pat Vailliencourt, Village president, stated, “[The seniors] were actually excited about ‘a home’ where they could increase their visibility, increase meals served and bus riders. A permanent space would allow them to expand their activities and take advantage of grants that would be available.”
Other Community Center uses discussed at a series of roundtables held on the topic during 2018 and 2019 included a home for a Community Parks and Recreation program, transportation hub, event space, a call center for community events and non-profits, counseling/health clinic space, performance space, a non-profit coffee shop, space for a commercial kitchen, clothing exchange, medical loan closet, art space, a base for Meals on Wheels to operate from, and an emergency shelter.
The Ackerson building is 63,650 square feet and includes a gymnasium and locker rooms, a stage, cafeteria, a library, small kitchen, bathrooms, classrooms, offices, a walk-in vault, and a parking lot. The newer section of the building, which was the “Nellie Ackerson Elementary school,” was renovated within the last 15 years and now includes an up-to-date office complex including an office suite plus a board and conference room. The “old high school” section of the building was only minimally renovated in 2003-04, and still has needs that can be addressed.
As recently as the summer of 2019, the school district was willing to sell the Ackerson Building for $1 to be turned into a community center. (This is most likely the case still but the district is somewhat in flux as they are currently conducting a search for a new superintendent.)
Based on calculations by the school district in 2016, the Ackerson building costs on average $4,483/month, or $53,800/year, to operate. This takes into account gas, electric, water, and trash service. On top of that, the district estimated another $2,798/month or $33,587/year for custodial and maintenance costs (including groundskeeping and plowing), which brings the total operating cost up to $87,387/year or $7,282 per month.
It isn’t just maintenance costs, either. Half of the Ackerson building is heated by a cast iron boiler that needs to be replaced–the cost of which is estimated at $70,000–and a section of the roof will need to be re-surfaced in 2026 at an estimated cost of $28,875.
While the CRC would be able to pay for some of the monthly expenses of the Ackerson Building, operating and maintaining it themselves is far outside of their budget. The Community Center would have to be a collaboration with one or more government bodies or organizations.
A Community Center would not only allow for an expansion of the CRC back to operating at its previous capacity, but would allow for them expand. MASCC could have a permanent home. And the possibilities for other community programs, activities, and events are endless!
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