The Hudson Board of Selectmen spent part of its most recent meeting discussing a proposal that could give the Hudson Community Food Pantry a new permanent home, following news that the organization’s current building is being sold. With the pantry serving dozens of families each week and providing critical support to students and households across town, officials said the situation requires timely action.
Town Administrator Roy Sorenson told Selectmen that the pantry has expressed interest in relocating to the former Recreation Center property at 2 Oakwood Street, a town owned building currently used for storage. “The Hudson Community Food Pantry has expressed interest in establishing a new permanent location at the town owned former Recreation Center property located at 2 Oakwood Street,” Sorenson said. “The Pantry’s current location is being sold, requiring the organization to identify an alternative facility in order to continue providing food assistance to Hudson residents.”
Sorenson said the proposal offers an opportunity for the town to evaluate a community serving use for an underutilized municipal building. “The Pantry’s proposal therefore presents an opportunity to evaluate a community serving use of an existing municipal property while the Town simultaneously works to improve utilization of its overall building portfolio,” he said, noting that broader discussions about town facilities will take place in future meetings.
To begin the process, Sorenson said Town Counsel was asked to prepare a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Town and the Food Pantry. The MOU outlines a framework for continued evaluation of the Oakwood Street property, including due diligence, land use approvals, property considerations, and legal requirements. “The MOU is intended to memorialize the parties’ present understanding and establish a process for moving forward,” Sorenson said.
He also noted that the Oakwood Street building is currently filled with stored records, furniture, and miscellaneous items. “We store our records there. We have miscellaneous furniture in there and some stuff,” Sorenson said. “And quite honestly, there’s probably a lot of stuff in there that doesn’t need to be in there.”
Speaking on behalf of the Food Pantry, Maureen Dionne described the organization’s long history and the scale of its work. “We have been an integral part of this town for over four decades,” Dionne said. “We currently serve over 50 families a week. With our weekly food distributions, we provide meals on Friday afternoons, bags of food to over 75 students in the Hudson School District who do not have access to food over the weekend when school meals are not available.”
She added that the pantry also provides holiday meals and gifts to more than 150 families each year. “All of that is done 100% by volunteer run,” she said. “We are a volunteer run organization, very well supported by generous donors, community partners, and local organizations.”
With their current building being sold, Dionne said the pantry needs both a short term and long term solution. When asked whether the Oakwood Street building would be large enough, she said it could work for now. “In the short term, yes, we could likely handle our weekly distribution,” she said, noting that a full needs assessment would still be required.
For long term use, Dionne said the pantry recognizes that the building would likely need an addition. “Quite honestly, we recognize that it will likely need an addition to be absolutely funded by the Hudson Community Food Pantry,” she said. “We would take on any of that expense for site work and the addition. But in the short term, we do believe we could utilize the property in its existing state.”
Board Chair Dillon Dumont said he supports exploring the idea. “I think it’s a good use of an underutilized property,” Dumont said. “I think what you guys do adds tremendous value to Hudson in general, so I’m happy to try to come to terms that are favorable for both the Town of Hudson and the Food Pantry as a whole.”
The Board of Selectmen voted unanimously to authorize the Chairman to execute the MOU, allowing the Food Pantry to begin formal due diligence and land use review for the potential relocation to 2 Oakwood Street.