The citizens of Dover at a Special Town Meeting held on June 12, 2021 voted to approve the  renovation of the Caryl Community Center. At the meeting, the Town also voted to issue debt in the amount of $18.8 million to fund the project as presented. 

In June of 2022 the bids for the construction of the building were opened and the total costs for  the approved design totaled $21.5 million, $2.7 million over the amount approved at Town  Meeting. The Caryl Building Committee presented the bids to the Board of Selectmen (BOS)  and recommended that the BOS schedule a Town Meeting for early July to seek approval for  the overage. The BOS voted not to move forward with a July Town meeting in order to ensure  that ALL citizens of Dover were in Town to attend and had the opportunity to vote at the Meeting 

The BOS also wanted to be able to: 

-provide the Town with a plan for a building that cost $18.8 million as well as the cost of  the original building design that was approved at Town Meeting; and 

-provide answers to the citizens of Dover as to why the cost per square foot of our  building is in excess of costs received by other communities during the same time frame 

The BOS decision not to hold the requested July Town Meeting, was the nullification of the existing construction bids. Unfortunately, this delay may result in higher total project costs that  may exceed the cost provided in June 2022, depending on construction market conditions. 

Current Status 

At the end of August, the BOS and the Caryl Building Committee met to formalize a plan to  move the project forward. At that meeting it was agreed that the Caryl Building Committee  would provide the BOS with the following deliverables by the end of September 2022: 

-Timeline and cost to rebid the building design approved at the 2021 Town Meeting

-Timeline and cost to redesign a community center that would cost $18.8 million. 

Based upon these timelines the BOS will be able to set a date for a Town Meeting for the Town  to make a decision on the path forward for the Dover Community Center. 

The BOS is committed to ensuring that the project moves forward as quickly as possible,  however it is our responsibility to deliver fiscally responsible options to the Town. We will be  updating the status regularly on the website, social media and regular news channels. To ensure that you get current information please sign up on the website for regular updates via  this link: https://www.doverma.gov/list.aspx and follow the instructions at the top of the page.  You can also call the BOS Office and provide us with your email address so that we can add you  to this list.