Cohasset Select Board to Seek $18.4 Million More for Public Safety Building

COHASSET — September 23, 2025 — Cohasset Select Board advances a $18.4 million special town meeting ask for the proposed 135 King Street public safety building after receiving final bid results Tuesday. Owner's Project Manager Daniel Palato reported a low bid of $18,987,000 from M. O'Connor Construction — $793,000 below the architect's own mid-range estimate — bringing the all-in project cost to roughly $28.8 million against the $10.4 million already authorized at the 2023 special town meeting. HKT Architects principals Amy Dunlap and Paula Claridge walked the board through a 23,600-square-foot design that has been cut from more than 30,000 square feet through three iterations. Police Chief William Quigley warned that a potential fifth state citation on the Elm Street detention cells could elevate the town's liability to gross negligence as soon as October, saying "you're sure as hell not going to like the lawsuit." A formal board vote to place the appropriation and a debt-exclusion ballot question before voters is expected within the next two weeks; two public forums on the project are planned for October.