Alex Comeau

In the coming months, the City of Nashua will be ramping up discussions on what to do with the site and building currently occupied by Elm St. Middle School and the Keefe Auditorium. Preliminary discussions are already underway regarding possible uses for the site once construction is completed on the newly named Brian S. McCarthy Middle School located to the southwest of Downtown Nashua.

There seems to be consensus from the public and from the city regarding some potential uses that they don’t want to see; mainly high-rise, high density residential development, commercial development, or substantial retail development, including big box retail. That’s about where the agreements end, however, as the other three most likely uses for the site are creating substantial division among those who are following progress of the project.

In the most recent Public Information Session hosted by the city’s Office of Economic Development, several strategists including architects, designers, construction experts, gathered to present potential uses for the site. Those potential uses range from all new development on the site to a hybrid model that maintains the historic portion of the middle school and the Keefe Auditorium while adding in new development around those buildings, to open/green space designs.

The most vocal group from the public so far, and what will likely be the most vocal group going forward, is the “Save the Keefe” group. To be clear, there is likely no one who is dead set against saving the Keefe Auditorium, but the general public needs to understand that this is not an abstract decision that simply comes down to “Do we save the auditorium or not?”. Like most debates there’s a lot of nuances in this discussion.

The City has heard from experts that to continue to operate the Keefe Auditorium after the closure of the Elm Street Middle School will require an investment of upwards of $30,000,000 to bring the aging building up to code, add the necessary utility infrastructure, ADA compliant restrooms, a lobby, an HVAC system to heat and cool the building, and the possibility of concession capabilities. There is a growing concern among taxpayers that the city simply can’t afford another $30,000,000 performance center when construction isn’t even completed on the last $30,000,000 performance center that half of the city didn’t want. As the rate of inflation continues to rise and the increases in the cost of materials, there’s no guarantee that $30,000,000 will even be enough come two years from now when the new school opens and Elm Street closes.

Even if the city does move forward with the investment into the building itself, this is not a one-time expense looked at like a snapshot. This would require long-term investment. Who would operate the space? Who would handle maintenance and upkeep? What annual costs would the city be responsible for above and beyond the renovation costs? Would the city be responsible for booking and hosting performances or would a for-profit performance company manage the facility and its bookings? These are questions to which no one seems to have answers. As of now, the Office of Economic Development is saying there has been no interest from the private sector in taking over and maintaining this space, so it would ultimately fall onto the already strapped taxpayers.

The same questions and more exist for other proposals, such as retaining the existing gymnasium. Who would operate that? Would that fall under the umbrella of Parks and Recreation and result in their need to expand their budget and staffing, or would the city be looking for a company to buy or lease the space, such as the YMCA? There has been no interest from the private sector on that issue either.

What seemed to be the most popular idea for development on the site was some sort of hybrid combination of green space, light residential, and either a stand-alone version of the Keefe Auditorium or the auditorium and the existing school structure maintained, after the necessary renovations, possibly by turning the school building into apartments. This is unfeasible, however, as the school building is largely unsuitable for renovations and has a very limited use. The consultants also discussed a lack of available parking in the area, proposing that people coming to a show at the auditorium might have to walk from the Elm St or High St garages or take a shuttle from Shaw’s. Imagine that! Someone even suggested that it was a good thing that there wouldn’t be enough parking, because it would force people to walk more.

This is a growing problem with too many issues these days; these questions are asked in the abstract but without the grounded realities to be able to properly answer them. If you ask someone ‘Do you want to Save the Keefe?’ of course most, if not all, people will say yes. For it to have any meaning there has to be a plan. How does one save the Keefe? What do we as a city actually do? We can’t just say ‘Save the Keefe!’ and then move on. It’s not a light switch that we can just turn off or on. That’s like when someone adds a frame to their profile picture on social media that’s supposed to show support for a cause. That’s great, but what did you actually do to support that cause? It’s very easy to go on social media and say ‘Save the Keefe!’ but when asked how do we do that, a lot of those same people don’t have the answers. Ask 1,000 Nashuans if they want to save the Keefe and you’ll probably get 1,000 yes answers. Ask those same 1,000 people if they want to see their property taxes double to do so, you’ll likely get different answers.

It is unlikely that there is anyone in this city who hates the Keefe Auditorium and can’t wait to see the bulldozers coming down Elm Street. No one hates the Keefe. No one wants to bulldoze it. There is nothing wrong, however, with asking the questions. There’s nothing wrong with thinking that, although it is a historic building that a lot of people are nostalgic over, maybe the cost is too high. There is nothing wrong with thinking that this city can’t afford to fund another $30,000,000 (or more) theater less than a mile away from the $30,000,000 theater that hasn’t even been completed yet.

Too often in our society in recent times do differences in opinion migrate into attacks on character. This is already starting to happen on this issue as well and people better get ready for it to get worse before it gets better. If you dare to wonder if the cost is too high to ‘Save the Keefe’ you’ll be labeled as ‘Anti-Art’. It’s already happening on social media with some members of the city government lashing out at others they don’t agree with. One city official is even on Facebook telling people that the $30,000,000 is a made-up number to try to sway public opinion on the issue. One thing that everyone should be able to agree on is that the citizens of Nashua should be getting accurate facts from their elected officials, not agenda-based opinions.

Alex Comeau is a long-time Nashua resident, father of two Nashua school system alums, Nashua small business owner, and Alderman for Nashua’s Ward 6. He can be reached at info@comeau4nashua.com.