| NOVEMBER 30, 2006 -- Members of Manchester Grange have terminated a lease with the town to use an Olcott Street building for meeting space in exchange for repairs to the aging structure.
The 87 members of Manchester Grange 31 voted Nov. 1 to end the lease, but hoped another civic club would pick it up and sublease it back to the agriculture-based organization.
Assistant Town Attorney Timothy P. O'Neil said this week that town documents show the partnership between the town and Grange started in January 1970 - possibly earlier as records date only to the 1970s - when town officials agreed to lease the building for $1 a year.
In exchange, Grange members have been responsible for repairs to the building at 205 Olcott St., O'Neil said.
Now, though, the building has become in such disrepair that Grange members are unable to uphold their end of the bargain.
"It's a lot of building for them," Town Manager Scott Shanley said.
Grange secretary Edith Schoell said this week the building needs a new roof, among other repairs, and the upkeep "is getting out of hand" as members turn older.
According to the terms of the lease, the Grange has six months, or until June 1, 2007, to vacate the building, which is near the municipal complex at the landfill.
O'Neil said retired Director of Operations Louise Guarnaccia learned the UNICO club might be interested in leasing from the town, so she approached that group with the idea. Then the Grange could sublease from UNICO, under the proposal.
Schoell said the organization is not disbanding as a result of lease decision.
While the Grange voted Nov. 1 to terminate its lease, UNICO members decided on Nov. 8 that they weren't interested in managing the building either, O'Neil said, adding that he wrote to Schoell offering to rescind the lease termination.
Schoell said the Grange hasn't had a meeting to discuss O'Neil's offer. Members also haven't decided where they will meet and hold events come June 2007, she said.
The Grange started after the Civil War, Schoell explained, as a way to unite farmers and obtain better prices for their crops. Since then, it's become an advocacy group in Washington, D.C., and at the state legislature for food standards.
The local group - Granges are located throughout the state - collects food for the Manchester Area Conference of Churches and other organizations and gathers necessities for military men and women stationed overseas, Schoell said.
The Grange had a hand in starting the state's agricultural fairs, she noted, and is active in the Big E each fall. It also hosts a summer camp in Winchester for children ages 6 to 18.
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