Town Meeting voted to transfer $33,000 from free cash for the construction of a storage shed behind the West School for historical artifacts. The article was presented by Peter Coppola who noted the article has been on and off Town Meeting warrants since 2015.
The shed is set to be built 25 feet behind the West School so a school bus can drive in between the school and the shed. The shed itself will be architecturally similar to the ranch homes in the area and meet all zoning requirements. A permit will be requested to be able to provide electricity to the shed.
Shed will store artifacts that are currently on the floor at the Burlington Historical Museum and stored in its basement. By creating additional floor space at the museum, artifacts from the basement can be put on display. The shed will also create space to store artifacts while decisions can be made on whether to restore or get rid of them. Coppola shared an antidote on how some of Burlington’s old items can have considerable worth.
“A couple of years ago we received a Victorian era occasional table from the 1800s. When it came to us it was in about two dozen pieces, the only thing that was solid was the marble top,” Coppola continued. “We had it restored for $350, it is on display now and it’s worth about $4,500. It’s probably one of the more valuable assets we have on display at the museum”.
During questions from the assembly Coppola named several artifacts currently stored away that justify their continued preservation as well as citing the historical storage and safekeeping practices of other communities in the area.
Town Meeting passed the article by a 44-8 vote.
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