Bennington voters have approved selling the town senior center under a plan to redevelop the former Bennington High School. The development project’s estimated price tag has risen from an initial $30 million to $41 million.
During Tuesday’s Town Meeting Day, 1,466 people voted in favor of the senior center’s sale and 1,038 against it, according to unofficial election results from the town clerk’s office.
The outcome allows the town government and a local real estate company, Hale Resources, to move forward with a plan to acquire and redevelop the century-old former high school.
Under an existing contract, Vermont/New York resident Chris Gilbert will transfer the former Bennington High School to Hale Resources in exchange for a package deal of $1 million and the senior center. The center building is valued at $400,000, according to town officials.
Under the public-private partnership between the town and Hale Resources, the town would invest $2.9 million in the former school’s redevelopment and lease about a quarter of the 100,000-square-foot downtown building. That space would house a YMCA gymnasium and become the new location of the senior center and Bennington County’s Meals on Wheels program.
Hale Resources plans to transform most of the remaining area into a new child care facility and apartments, including more than a dozen permanently affordable housing units. About 3,000 square feet is being set aside for office space.
“I’m very pleased,” Bennington Selectboard Chair Jeannie Jenkins said of taking another step toward creating a “bigger and better space” for seniors.
She said the sale of the senior center to a private entity will also enable the building to begin generating tax revenue for the town and be transformed to new use.
The change in ownership of the senior center won’t affect programs within the building, including the Bennington County Meals on Wheels food service, Jenkins said.
“There will be no disruption, that I’m assured,” said Ilsa Svoboda, director of the Meals on Wheels program, whose cafe occupies the senior center’s ground floor.
Hale Resources plans to finalize the purchase of the historic school building this June and begin renovations in October, company co-partner Zak Hale has said. Under that timeline, building tenants and residents could move in at the start of 2026.
In January, Hale Resources revised its estimated cost for the redevelopment project from $29.8 million to $41.2 million.
The company is footing the bulk of the project cost, tapping funding sources that include grants, tax credits and private investments. The town’s portion of the price tag includes $2 million in construction expenses and $500,000 in pre-development and fit-up costs — which will be funded with federal coronavirus relief dollars.
Hale said the higher price tag was due to several factors, including the rise in construction costs and adding the expense for extensive asbestos removal. He said the project also had to bring in a professional construction management company, New York-based MLB Construction Services, which has more experience handling large-scale projects and could get a multimillion-dollar bond as protection from financial loss or damages.
“It kind of grew into a project that got a little bit bigger than what we’re experienced with,” Hale said in an interview. “I think a lot of the funders appreciated that we did hire MLB Construction.”
Jenkins, the Selectboard chair, and Bennington Assistant Town Manager Dan Monks said any changes in the project cost would have no impact on taxpayers.
“The Town’s financial commitment remains the same,” Monks said in an email. “Hale Resources is responsible for all additional costs. This has not changed.”
Hale Resources would also be responsible for maintaining the property. The town will be given an initial lease of 15 years and an option to extend up to 50 years.
The former high school, which has largely been vacant since 2004, was replaced by Mount Anthony Union High School.
