Hingham Select Board unanimously backs $30 million Center for Active Living

HINGHAM -- February 26, 2026, Hingham Select Board unanimously advances $29.9 million Center for Active Living and two civil service departures to Annual Town Meeting. The three-member board, Chair Bill Ramsey, Julie Strehle, and a third member, voted 3-0 Thursday on nine warrant articles, including Article P authorizing construction of a new senior facility at Bearcove Park Drive, down from an earlier $35 million estimate after a 9.6 percent reduction in square footage to 25,950 square feet. Articles CC and DD would fund the fire and police departments' exit from the state civil service system at a combined cost of roughly $750,000, split among approximately 100 union members at $7,500 each; Fire Chief Murphy cited the inability to hire paramedic-track candidates before rival communities poach them as the central problem. The board also approved a $1.81 million library chiller replacement funded from excess fund balance and recommended selling two surplus properties, 8 Short Street and 230 North Street, with proceeds restricted by law to capital expenditures and expected to flow to the Capital Stabilization Fund. More than a dozen residents addressed the board on the senior center, with supporters calling the current 5,000-square-foot facility "embarrassing" and opponents urging a pause over affordability concerns and the impact on Bearcove Park.