The Marion Selectmen endorsed a concept for the Town House renovation at Tuesday night’s meeting.

After a presentation from the Marion Town House Building Committee, the Selectmen voiced their support for a plan that would see the current Town House receive an $11.9 million renovation.

The last major renovation was more than 40 years ago, and the committee acknowledged the long list of hazardous building materials and poor air circulation in the building that have created unsatisfactory working conditions for employees.

The committee said the renovation will solve numerous building code, fire code and accessibility violations, as well as result in an exponentially more energy efficient building.

Other options the committee considered were to construct a new building in a new location or to demolish the current Town House and build another on the same site.

Ultimately, the committee decided renovating the existing Town House would be the most cost efficient option.

Another factor that played into the decision was the historical value of the building. The committee believes the Town House is a historical and architectural treasure.

The Selectmen agreed with this notion as well, and gave their endorsement for the renovation plan.

“Doing nothing isn’t an option, and I couldn’t live with seeing this building torn down,” Selectman Steve Gonsalves said.

Next, the committee will work on more detailed design plans. They will return to the Selectmen to seek approval to use Community Preservation funds that were previously authorized at Town Meeting to pay for more detailed schematic and design development documents. The committee plans to present voters with a complete budget for the project at the Annual Town Meeting next spring.

In other news: The Selectmen welcomed Steve Gonsalves to his first meeting. Gonsalves was elected on Friday in the annual town election.

They also discussed the Future Generation Wind Project, a Plymouth-based alternative energy project with which Marion and Old Rochester Regional Junior High and High Schools have signed contracts.

The turbines are expected to go online in the "very beginning" of June, according to the Selectmen. Getting communication lines installed is the only thing that still needs to be done to get the turbines up and operational.

Once they are functional, the the town and ORR will see a reduction in their electricity costs over the next 20 years.