If you plan to vote in person on Tuesday, might want to check your polling place first

I can offer some answers on the Roslindale CC building. I oversee the childcare program in the building.

A large fire sprinkler supply line broke near the roof and flooded all floors badly. By the time the fire dept arrived a few minutes after the alarms went off the water was already pouring out the doors into the street. At least half of the ceilings on the first floor catastrophically failed after being soaked and fell to the floor, tearing down air vents and light fixtures in the process. Ceilings on the 2nd and basement level had lighter damage. Wet floors buckled in some areas including the recently replaced gym floor funded by Omni Software and the Boston Celtics. The north end of the building (end with the RMV) was damaged the worse wiping out the RMV, and the preschool rooms on the 1st floor, and the athletic directors office on the 2nd. The HVAC system controller in the basement boiler room was also wiped out.

About 2 weeks after the flood, the pandemic restrictions on construction went into affect, and City Hall also closed sending all people home to work from home. This set back all of the processes associated with insurance claims, design and repair assessments, and the construction bid process. As a building tenant we were told about the setbacks as they got worse and worse, and our return date kept getting pushed back.

The day after the flood the RMV moved out lock, stock, barrel, and damp furniture. The 4 walls in that area are bare. Best rumor is that they will not return to that space since it is too small for their needs and they are looking for alternate digs in the general area. Worth noting that their process for relocation was also shut down due to pandemic restrictions.

The childcare service was able to get enough material for their management to work from home but the service eventually had to be suspended when its license ran out. In late July we were told to remove all of our salvageable furniture and office equipment and by Aug 19 we had what was salvageable in storage at a major cost. The program remains suspended and staff was laid off after a Federal CARES Act PPP loan (turned grant) was exhausted and cash reserves also depleted.

The age of the building and the water that got into ceiling crawl spaces set the stage for more than just some ceilings to be replaced. Mold and mildew is now a factor as well as wall board and flooring. The HVAC control system was also a dozen years old and will need to be replaced 100% and will then need various zone controls upgraded and various valves and the in-out air lines (which were insulated fabric-fiber) to be replaced, and new carbon monoxide sensors will have to be added beyond obvious expectations to meet new fire and safety codes. Many electrical fixtures will also need replacement especially suspended light fixtures that were torn out from the ceilings falling in.

With the shut down of construction and city offices, as well as private construction firms doing the same, everything was continuously pushed back. With the childcare business now out and in exile, and temporarily out of business, the city process has moved forward. Sometime in September the remainder of the city-owned holdings that can be salvaged will be removed to storage and anything left will fill the dumpster... or rather multiple dumpsters... since at this point, what ServePro left in place after the flood damaged mess was originally cleaned up, has progressed to a worsened state.

Let's remember this was due to pandemic closures statewide. This was a perfect storm, and the place does look like a hurricane went through it in some areas. At this point we are talking "millions" in the cost to repair.

As of this writing, the Roslindale Community School Council, a 501c3 made up of Roslindale residents, that ran the childcare and preschool has been told it will be sometime after Thanksgiving before much of the work is done, and possibly closer to mid-December of Christmas. When (and if) it restarts, it will be rebuilding its programs from scratch like it did back in 2008 when the last construction on that building was done.

Standard city process is that a major rebuild like this will need to have it brought up to new and current code in the process. Once the construction firm moves in, they will take control of the building during the construction process and no one will be allowed in until the job is finished and the facility is returned to city possession.

The childcare service will likely be asking for community help when it gets back into the building since it lost all of its rugs, games, toys, office supplies, school supplies. At least 1/3 of the furniture could not be saved including an office computer, printer,and a refrigerator, and a wide diversity of other stuff you need to run such a business. It cannot ask for help at this time since its return date is still ambiguous, and there is no place to store donated items. we also do not want to take any cash until we know what the future will look like for us.

The pandemic and return to school plans will change how the preschool will look, and it will also change how the childcare (after school) program will look. Hopefully by the end of this year we will have a better grasp of what that will look like. As it stands everyone is still guessing, and the restrictions now in place from the state on childcare services cannot be attained by many programs. Indeed only about 70-75% of prior services are running. Many, like Kids Fun Stop in west Roxbury, threw in the towel and went out of business.

Due to pandemic closures at this location, and elsewhere, the insurance claim on our losses are still in the loop and could still be months before there is a decision on what will be covered and what will not.

So for us this was a perfect storm. Some community centers will be opening up this week with limited programming but the Roslindale facility will remain closed to the public with many things not working (like damaged lights) and a dead ventilation system that is not working in many areas of the building.

City staff that is normally in that building has been transferred temporarily to other facilities. A single lone staff person may be in the building limited hours to admit occasional repair people that still gather info, but otherwise that place is closed for the duration.

EDIT - I do not speak on behalf of the City of Boston or its BCYF Department. The information provided is my own based on my personal experiences dealing with this issue.

I hate to say it, but...you can vote in person. Your in-person ballot will be counted and your mailed ballot will be discarded whenever it shows up.