Union School Building Rehabilitation and Reuse Plan

The Dunstable Union Building Rehabilitation Committee, acting through the Town Administrator, requested assistance from Northern Middlesex Council of Governments (NMCOG) to identify a viable reuse for the Union Building and potential funding sources for rehabilitation. The Town also released a Request for Proposals (RFP) and chose Spencer Preservation Group for architectural and planning services to coordinate closely with NMCOG and complete an adaptive reuse feasibility study and restoration plan for the building.

The report below details the results of that study. The overwhelming takeaway from community members, both at public workshops and through a survey with nearly 200 responses, is that the Union Building is a beloved structure that should be preserved. In addition, using the building for a mix of community focused uses and private revenue-generating uses is ideal. This study notes several cases of other historical buildings in Massachusetts that were renovated and adaptively reused for this sort of mix and shares the lessons those cases impart. Finally, the team’s analysis concludes that the Union Building is still very structurally sound, but exterior improvements should be made as soon as possible to avoid cost escalation and further degradation to critical features.