Community Preservation Committee seeks funds to restore two historic sites
The Community Preservation Committee is seeking funding to reassess the historic building used by DCTV and begin planning a renovation. Source: DCTV 
Shingles are missing all along the siding of the building.
The building’s siding and foundation stand out as key issues.
The committee hopes to request funding for the renovation construction at the 2026 Spring Town Meeting.
The Community Preservation Committee is seeking funding to reassess the historic building used by DCTV and begin planning a renovation. Source: DCTV
Shingles are missing all along the siding of the building.
The building’s siding and foundation stand out as key issues.
The committee hopes to request funding for the renovation construction at the 2026 Spring Town Meeting.
A total of $75,000 will be requested from Dartmouth’s Community Preservation Act Fund for two projects at the upcoming Spring Town Meeting on Tuesday, June 3.
Town Meeting members will be gathered at the Dartmouth High School Auditorium at 9 a.m. The meeting will be available to watch live through Dartmouth Community Media. The final draft of the Town Meeting warrant will be available by May 27.
The Community Preservation Act, adopted by Dartmouth in 2002, allows cities and towns to levy a 1 to 3% surcharge on local property taxes, with matching funds from the state, to support affordable housing, historic preservation, open space, and recreation.
Dartmouth currently imposes a 1.5% surcharge. The town’s Community Preservation Committee reviews proposals based on community needs, but final approval lies with Town Meeting voters.
This spring, the committee is requesting $25,000 to fund bid documents for a renovation of Dartmouth Community Media’s headquarters at 247 Russells Mills Road.
Since moving into the historic building in 2009, Dartmouth Community Media has completed several improvements, including a study that identified key issues such as a need for some asbestos abatement. But with the building continuing to deteriorate, including issues with the foundation and its siding, a new assessment is needed.
“There’s a bunch of shingles missing — I’m not sure what it’s going to look like behind that,” said Director of Media Peter Chasse.
Chasse said the team is taking a cautious approach, given the uncertainty about the full scope of necessary repairs. If funding is approved, the goal is to complete a study, most of the renovation design and cost estimates by the end of the year, with construction funding to be requested at the 2026 Spring Town Meeting.
The second request, for $50,000, would support restoration work at the Joseph Davis Cemetery off Faunce Corner Road. The project includes cleaning all 200 headstones, repairing 69 that are cracked or out of place and restoring a section of damaged stone wall that may call for the removal of a tree for stabilization.
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