Lower-Level Town Hall Parking for Visitors March 28-April 8
Town Administrator Michael Mullen, together with Highway Superintendent Tom Ferry and Building Commissioner James Aguiar, announces that construction has begun on the Town Hall entrance ramp accessibility project.
The Dighton Highway Department began digging at the Town Hall today, March 25. Construction is officially expected to begin Monday, March 28 and the work is expected to take up to two weeks, with Town Hall’s upper-level parking area to be used as a staging area.
Lower-level Town Hall parking will be reserved for residents and visitors between March 28-April 8. The upper- and lower-level parking areas will not be able to be accessed for employees during this time.
“The accessibility of the Town Hall’s upper level will be impacted during the reconstruction,” said Town Administrator Mullen. “Every effort will be made to assist employees, residents and visitors who need temporary accommodations while this work is ongoing.”
The Dighton Town Hall houses the offices of the Town Clerk, Town Treasurer/Collector, Accountant, Assessor, Town Administrator, Planning Board, Conversation Commission, Town Administrator and Board of Selectmen. The building is frequented by both municipal employees and the general public to conduct business and attend various meetings.
Currently, the front entrance ramp at the Town Hall poses significant challenges for those with mobility or health issues. As part of the project, the town will replace the existing walkway with a new accessible walkway, thus removing a longstanding barrier for residents to access municipal government operations.
The scope of the project includes the excavation of the existing ramp to the main level entrance and the surrounding landscape in order to build a five-foot-wide concrete walkway with a slope not greater than 3% that will connect the main entrance to the existing parking area. The landing area at the main level entrance will also be excavated to eliminate accessibility barriers of the landing area, with a new landing area poured and the door threshold replaced.
A five-foot-wide concrete walkway will also be constructed along the front of the main parking area to provide for an accessible route outside of the parking area traffic pattern to connect to the new walkway to the main entrance of Town Hall.
The project is being funded as part of a $151,000 state grant awarded to the Town of Dighton in late 2021 by the Massachusetts Office on Disability.
“Town Hall is the home base for many of our municipal operations and must be accessible,” Town Administrator Mullen said. “With the creation of this new pathway, the most frequently visited building in our community will be a welcoming and easily-accessible place for people of all ages and abilities.”
Residents entering the Town Hall Lower Level during the construction project who have difficulty accessing the main level of Town Hall are encouraged to call Leeanne Kerwin in the Board of Selectmen’s Office for assistance at 508-669-6431.
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