Tolles-Parsons Center: A Look Back

WELLESLEY, MA - After more than a decade of deliberation, the Tolles-Parsons Center has come one step closer to becoming a reality.

The Town Meeting approved the project Tuesday night, leaving its future in the hands of Wellesley residents, who will vote on the center in May.

Nearly 80 percent of Town Meeting members backed the $9 million project, which has remained in limbo for 11 years, according to the Wellesley Townsman.

The idea for a senior center was first proposed in 2005 after a late resident of Wellesley left $825,000 to the town for the purpose of constructing a facility for senior citizens.

The building would house senior activities, multi-generational programs, offices for the Council on Aging and staff.

According to the Townsman, the proposal drew ire from some residents for its size, location and impact on taxes and required additional funding in 2013 before plans had even been approved.

That same year, the project hit a roadblock when the Planning Board refused to grant it a special permit. Though Town Meeting responded by purchasing the land neighboring the site, the Planning Board rejected the permit a second time.

In 2015 the Board of Selectman filed a lawsuit against the Planning Board in state land court, but ultimately dropped the suit after Harriet Warshaw, a staunch supporter of the senior center, won a seat on the Planning Board.

At the Town Meeting Tuesday, many members said that completion of the stalled project is essential to the welfare of the roughly 6,000 senior citizens in Wellesley, the Townsman reported.

The resident vote, to be held May 10, is the final step before groundbreaking on the facility can begin.