The Lexington Permanent Building Committee and DiNisco Design met on Wednesday to discuss the progress of the construction at Clarke and Diamond Middle Schools, the Hastings School and the new preschool and community center at Pelham Road. While all projects are progressing on schedule and on budget, DiNisco presented new design elements and adjustments for the Hastings School and the Pelham Road site.

Following a summit meeting of the Board of Selectmen and the School, Appropriation and Capital Expenditures Committees earlier this month, Donna DiNisco of DiNisco Design reported that the final decision at the Pelham Road project is to tear down the existing building and construct a new Lexington Children’s Place. A robust schematic design is projected to be ready to present at the fall special Town Meeting, scheduled for Oct. 16 and 18.

While the design for a brand-new LCP is moving forward, plans to devote part of the Pelham Road site to an expansion of the Lexington Community Center have been put on the back burner for now. At a summit meeting in August, committee members and selectmen will decide on the project’s next steps.

“We just want to continue to look at it holistically to see what makes sense from the community center aspect of it,” DiNisco said. “It’s taking a pause and not rushing into a decision that might not ultimately be the best decision for the community center.”

The Hastings Elementary School project is officially in the design development stage, said DiNisco. The biggest change to the building’s design was the decision to shift its orientation slightly south to increase the space between the school and the bordering properties to the north and reduce the length of the retaining wall between them. Brand-new building pitched for Lexington Children’s Place – News – Lexington Minuteman – Lexington, MA