WILMINGTON, MA — One week before Thanksgiving, a Special Town Meeting will be held on Thursday, November 20, 2025 at 7pm inside the Joanne Benton Memorial Auditorium at Wilmington High School (159 Church Street). Check-in will begin at 6:30pm.
In short, voters will decide if the former Buzzell Senior Center on School Street — recently vacated after the opening of the new Senior Center on Main Street — is worth saving. The 90-year-old building served as a school from 1935 to 1980, and a Senior Center from 1986 to 2025.
Voters will specifically be asked to consider the following two articles, which are the only articles on the warrant:
ARTICLE 1. To see if the Town will vote to overturn the action of the Wilmington Select Board taken on September 22, 2025 authorizing the demolition of the building known as the Former Buzzell Senior Center/Buzzell School located at 15 School Street.
ARTICLE 2. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate, transfer from available funds, or borrow pursuant to any applicable statute a sum of money for improvements to the former Buzzell Senior Center for renovation, and related improvements thereto of said building, to bring into compliance with relevant building codes and standards for municipal and or community use including the payment of all costs incidental and related thereto: not to exceed more than $615,000 and to take any other action relative thereto.
At last week’s meeting on October 14, 2025, the Wilmington Select Board unanimously voted 5-0 to call the Special Town Meeting. Their hand was forced by a successful citizen-led petition effort, which garnered signatures from approximately 300 registered voters, easily surpassing the legally required 200-signature threshold.
At its September 22, 2025 meeting, the Select Board voted 3-1-1 to demolish the former Buzzell Senior Center. Members Gary DePalma, Jake Gearwar and Lilia Maselli voted for demolition; Chair Frank West voted against demolition; and member Kevin Caira abstained from the vote due to his ties to the Wilmington Sons & Daughters of Italy, a prospective tenant if the building were to be saved and leased to a community organization.
That vote came immediately following a presentation and discussion with the Chair and Vice Chair of the Building Reuse Committee.
The presentation, discussion and vote takes nearly one hour, and runs in the video below from 5:25 to 1:01:50.
Prior to this presentation to the Select Board, the Building Reuse Committee had held 7 public meetings from February 2025 to July 2025, including a Public Forum on May 14, 2025, all dedicated to assessing the reuse viability of the Buzzell Senior Center. The Committee issued its findings in a report on July 16, 2025. (Read the report HERE. It’s 6 pages, plus 70+ pages of appendices.) Ultimately, the 9-member committee was split 4-4-1 on whether to recommend to the Select Board demolition or repurposing. (The abstaining member was, again, someone with close ties to the Wilmington Sons & Daughters of Italy.)
As noted in the report, the committee developed a scorecard to assess the old Buzzell Senior Center’s reuse viability, weighing 10 different criteria (staffing needs, community input, cost to maintain utilities, sewer/septic, safety inspection, modified facility condition index, public access parking, historic value, accessibility, and other/general bonus points). When all the scorecards were tallied, the average reuse viability score for the Buzzell School worked out to 62.8 out of 100. The report notes this score “indicates the viability of reuse is slightly more likely than tearing the building down.”
The Committee’s community input survey, which ran from May 15, 2025 to June 10, 2025, garnered 777 responses. It found that 62.27% of respondents (482) wished to see the Buzzell repurposed, while 34.75% (269) supported demolition and 4% had no opinion. Potential uses involving the Recreation Department, the Library, the Arts Council, WCTV, the Sons & Daughters of Italy and a “Youth Center” were all suggested.
The primary argument against repurposing the building appeared to be financial. According to the Committee’s report, the preliminary estimate to upgrade the building to code is $1,191,000, while demolition and hazardous material abatement is estimated at just $124,300. Some Building Reuse Committee members felt the $1,191,000 amount was inflated, and there was further disagreement over which upgrades were needed immediately and which could be phased in over a 3-to-5-year capital planning window to soften the financial blow to taxpayers. The Committee’s report noted $665,000 is what is needed immediately to bring the building up to code, which is in the ballpark with the $615,000 amount being asked for in Article #2.
During discussion with the Reuse Building Committee Chair & Vice Chair, Selectwoman Maselli emphasized the initial $665,000 would just bring the building up to code, and not actually make the space what the future occupant would want it to be.
“As an example, let’s say the Rec Department wanted to gut the whole thing and make it one big space, all that would be in addition [to the $665,000] and be on the town’s dollar,” she noted, also noting that if WCTV were to lease the space, renovations for a studio space would likely be necessary.
“It comes down to the funds,” continued Maselli. “For me, personally, I think we should take it down, whether that’s an unpopular opinion or not… I believe we’re putting more money into the building than it’s worth.”
Selectman Kevin Caira noted that because the property is zoned Residential 20 (R20), he doesn’t believe community groups — like the Sons & Daughters of Italy and WCTV — would be eligible to have their headquarters there under the current zoning.
In response to a question from Chair West, Public Buildings Superintendent Dennis Kelley said he’d prefer to take the estimated $1.2 million in necessary improvements to the former Senior Center and invest it in capital projects across 5-6 other buildings in town. West was also suggesting ways the town could lower the Buzzell’s renovation costs.
Building Reuse Committee member Paul Melaragni also spoke out in favor of saving the building. He argued finding additional parking spaces should not be a huge consideration, noting town staff, school staff, studetns and visitors will have sufficient parking (345 total spaces) under the parking configuration if the Buzzell remaining. Every two years, the Town may just need students to park in the Library’s lower lot during the two State/Federal Primary and General Elections if the Town Hall acts as a polling location. Melaragni also pointed out that many abutters and residents in the neighborhood signed a petition in support of the Buzzell being saved in order for WCTV to utilize. Finally, Melarangi shared the recommendation of the Town Hall/School Administration Building OPM that the future of the Buzzell be determined AFTER that new building opens, so decision makers can see how the two buildings interact with each other.
Board Drama
Soon thereafter, the meeting hit a roadblock when Chair Frank West stated he planned for the Board to wait and hold off on voting on the Buzzell’s fate until their next meeting on October 14, 2025. West suggested the board conduct a walk-through of the building on October 3, 2025.
Maselli told West she was not interested in conducting a site visit and was ready to vote tonight, without delay. Select Board member Gary DePalma agreed with Maselli, noting board members have been in the Buzzell many times and know its conditions. Select Board member Jacob Gearwar also indicated he was ready to vote. Caira, meanwhile, would have preferred to see the agenda specifically indicate that the board may take a vote on the matter. Caira also wanted to give residents one last opportunity to make public comments.
“I think it’s absurd if we don’t vote on it [tonight],” responded DePalma, who asked if the Town Manager could offer his opinion on whether or not a vote could be taken.
Town Manager Eric Slagle clarified the Board would not be violating the Open Meeting Law if a vote was taken because there is a “votes may be taken” clause under the “Appointments” portion of the agenda.
“Personally, I don’t see a harm in waiting two more weeks until our next meeting,” said West. “As the Chair, I think I have that discretion.”
Pubic Buildings Superintendent Kelley indicated the clock is ticking with the board needing to make a decision soon, as there is potentially contingency funds in the Town Hall/School Administration Building project’s budget that can be used to cover the demolition costs of the Buzzell.
Select Board member DePalma then made a motion to vote tonight, rather than delay until the next meeting. Chair West ruled the motion out of order, which DePalma called “absurd.” West again noted that a 2-week delay would do no harm, but Gearwar, Maselli and DePalma all countered that any delay was not going to change their votes.
“I’ll do whatever the Chair wants,” said Maselli. “I don’t mind waiting, but it’s just putting the vote off two more weeks.”
DePalma re-introduced his motion, which West did decide to entertain the second time around. Before proceeding, West asked if there was anyone in the audience who wanted to be heard under “Public Comments.” Maselli and West then appeared to have a misunderstanding. Maselli apparently thought West was giving audience members an opportunity to make “Public Comments” immediately, but West’s intention in polling the audience was to make board members aware that there were audience members present who wished to speak that the board would not hear from until the end of the meeting, after the relevant vote, making their comments moot. An argument then ensued between Maselli and West.
“We’re going to take a vote, but these people will not be heard,” said West, who pointed out the Historical Commission Chair wanted to offer remarks.
The board would then vote, but things got a little confusing. DePalma’s motion was “to vote on the issue tonight.” The actual motion didn’t indicate whether to demolish or save the building, just merely to vote. (DePalma may have planned on making a second motion to support demolition after the first motion passed.) Gearwar seconded DePalma’s original motion. West then called for the vote and re-worded the motion by asking “is there a vote to demolish the Buzzell School?,” which wasn’t DePalma’s original motion. DePalma, Gearwar and Maselli then voted yes. West voted no. Caira, who did not abstain from the discussion, then announced he would abstain from the vote due to his involvement in the Wilmington Sons & Daughters of Italy.
West then did not announce the results of the vote — which is customary — so Maselli asked West if the vote passed. West said it had — 3 in favor, 1 opposed, 1 abstained.
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