(Daily Hampshire Gazette- Naomi Scully) The top floor of Easthampton’s Old Town Hall boasts stunning stained-glass windows which shine into a large hall with high ceilings, a raised stage and a mahogany balcony.
The space once hosted Town Meetings, performances and policeman’s balls, yet it has been out of use since the early 2000s because it is not accessible or up to building code.
That could change in the near future if CitySpace, the nonprofit that manages the building and leases space there to Easthampton City Arts and Big Red Frame/The Elusie Gallery, is successful in completing a three-phase, $11.5 million restoration of the two-story, 154-year-old brick building at 43 Main St.
The first phase, completed last year, involved replacing the heating, ventilation and air conditioning and electrical systems and installing infrastructure for high voltage power from the basement to the second floor.
Late last month, CitySpace received a significant $501,830 grant through the state’s Underutilized Property Program, to help push the project into its second phase. That phase calls for restoration of Old Town Hall’s second floor, focusing on making it Americans with Disabilities Act compliant. The ultimate goal of the project, to be completed in a third phase, will be to turn the second floor into a 350-seat, fully accessible, flexible arts venue. That work will involve repairing the ceiling, installing theater lighting and sound systems and creating more backstage space.
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There was an earmark in a capital bond grant that we’d approached the state about, and [Rep. Daniel Carey and Sen. John Velis] instead suggested we go through this Underutilized Property program, so that funding is, I think, what we are going to need to go out to bid,” said Mike Tautznik, the treasurer for CitySpace and former mayor of Easthampton.
The overall project is being funding with state and federal money, the city Easthampton and private donors.
CitySpace hopes to have funding for the third phase by the end of next year. The group has already secured $1.3 million in Community Preservation Act from the city, and is seeking additional federal and state funding, as well as looking to raise an additional $1 million from the community.