On Nov. 12, 2024, the Waltham City Council voted in favor of allocating $6 million from the City’s Community Preservation Act fund to help the Waltham Boys and Girls Club with a building improvement. The funding from the city is a fraction of the $25,310,000 total cost of the proposed project. 

The property, which stands at 20 Exchange Street, opened its doors to the community in November of 1952, 14 years after when the clubs first opened at, what was at the time, Asbury Temple Building at 686 Main Street. According to application filing with the city, WBGC creates programs for over 1,200 children and teens that emphasize character and leadership development, education and career support, health and life skills, cultural arts, sports and recreation. 

However, the 501(c)(3) corporation, sees the building's historical condition as a step back to its ability to work towards its mission of “inspir[ing] and enabl[ing] all young people, especially those who need us most, to realize their full potential as productive, responsible and caring citizens.” According to the CPA funding application, the “aging building” does not meet modern safety and accessibility standards. 

In a Long Term Debt & Capital Planning Committee meeting on Monday, Nov. 4, the Executive Director of the Waltham Boys and Girls Club, Erica Young, said the building does not meet the Americans with Disabilities Act and fire safety standards. Additionally, as mentioned in the club’s finding application, the original window glass is “cracking and shedding glass” in the building, creating a safety hazard. Young shared instances of club attendees having trouble accessing different rooms and then not being able to access other rooms without assistance, due to the lack of an elevator in a multi-level building. 

“Our entire mission is to serve all young people who need us and right now we are not able to do that,” Young said, adding "It's absolutely heartbreaking to watch and that should not happen in this day and age in our community.” 

The renovation plan for the building includes a set of improvements designed to restore original building features while enhancing accessibility, energy efficiency and safety. According to the CPA funding application, the main entrance facing Exchange Street was last modified in 1982, with changes to the interior lobby and the addition of an exterior ramp. The proposed project aims to restore some of the original design elements of the entrance while providing “significantly easier universal access to the building” by introducing an elevator in the lobby. The improvements would also involve removing previous alterations and installing a new triple-glazed aluminum curtain wall, as well as recoating the existing cast-in-place concrete landings.

The original brick walls will be repainted where necessary using appropriate and compatible new mortar to preserve their historic integrity. Additionally, the renovation plan calls for replacing the existing non-historic fiberglass windows with new aluminum-clad, double-glazed windows. These new windows will replicate the design and configuration of the original windows as closely as possible, restoring the building’s aesthetic while improving energy efficiency.

The roof, which currently features non-historic rubber membrane materials dating from 2002, 2006 and 2020, will be replaced with new insulated polyvinyl chloride roofing in a lighter color, creating a "cool roof" to reduce heat transfer into the building. 

For the indoor pool, only minimal alterations are proposed, primarily the replacement of existing glass block windows, missing or deteriorated tile and any original architectural elements will be restored, but according to the filings with the city, the space remains “exceptionally well-preserved.”

If funding permits, the application proposes an addition to the southwest corner of the existing building that would include an access ramp. This ramp will provide additional accessible entry points and an easy evacuation route for the lower classrooms in case of an emergency. “In a recent safety inspection conducted by an external safety assessor, this was flagged as a significant safety concern that must be addressed,” the application listed. 

The effort has received significant support including current Ward 6 city councilor Sean T. Durkee, who in a letter of support to Geoffrey Staton a WBGC Board member, writes “You are more than a non-profit seeking assistance — you are a bedrock of support in our community.” 

Mort Isaacson, the chair of the Waltham Historical Commission, also shared words of support for the project, writing in a Feb. 14 letter to Justin Barrett, chair of the Waltham Community Preservation Committee, that the Waltham Historical Commission voted on Feb. 12, 2024 to give its support to the WBGC. “This building is an important historic resource of the City of Waltham as it has been the home since 1952 of an organization that has played an important part in the history

and culture of the Cities since 1937,” the letter states. “Its significance to the youth of this community cannot be overstated.”

Waltham Public Schools also expressed support. Leanne Wilcinski, the then-acting superintendent of schools for the Waltham school district writes to the members of the CPC, highlighting the partnership throughout the school year and the important role that WBGC played during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

WBGC “has also been an active and consistent partner in providing prevention programming in out-of-school time,” the letter states, adding that the club's commitment to remaining open and providing meals to thousands of students who would otherwise lose access to the free breakfast and lunch and the distribution of Chromebooks and other essential school supplies as school became a learning center for virtual learning. 

“There is no question that the Waltham Boys & Girls Club is an instrumental partner to the Waltham Public Schools,” Wilcinski writes. “I see them as a very worthy candidate for CPA funding. I fully endorse this grant proposal and I Am confident that the Club will be able to provide additional support that aligns with our district priorities when their new building opens.”

During the Nov. 4 Long Term Debt & Capital Planning Committee meeting, Young noted that the project would need 80% of the total project cost in order to break ground. She says that the aim is to begin renovation no later than June 2026 and according to the application, the construction would conclude Oct. 2026. 

Massachusetts Congresswoman Katrine Clark included WBGC in her Appropriation Fund which allocated $1,046,000 to the project. 

The construction is projected to take between 12-18 months according to Young, and “the whole building will be closed.” 

“We are in conversations with several people throughout the city, to figure out where we will be located while we are closed down,” said Young. “But we have gotten commitments that there will be spaces for us,” the executive director added in reassuring Councillor at Large, Carlos Vidal who questioned what will happen to the kids during construction. 

The city’s funding will be supplied in $2 million a year increments for the next three years.