Youth center moving forward

The contract with the Andover Youth Foundation to build a new youth center in town was unanimously accepted and signed Monday by the Board of Selectmen. Voters at a Special Town Meeting in December approved spending $2 million from the town’s operating budget to help build a proposed $4.2 million, 20,000-square-foot center behind Doherty Middle School. After the contract was signed, the foundation presented the town with a $400,000 payment that will go toward architects’ fees, said Diane Costagliola, foundation chairwoman. Town manager Reginald S. Stapczynski is forming a seven-member building committee for the project, Costagliola said, adding that she expects he’ll present his final list for selectmen approval later this month. Including the $2 million from the town, the foundation has $3.8 million in the bank for the center and is continuing its fund-raising efforts, she said. - Katheleen Conti