NORTHFIELD — The Moody Center has withdrawn its participation in the Campus Center Community Collaborative Committee, also known as the C5, prompting the Selectboard to reconsider the committee’s future.

“It is a setback for the committee,” Selectboard Vice Chair and C5 member Heath Cummings said Tuesday night. “I do feel that, at certain times, that committee has been a little less collaborative than I imagined.”

The 13-member Campus Center Community Collaborative Committee was established by the Selectboard in 2021 in the wake of conversations that arose from a November 2020 announcement that The Moody Center — a nonprofit dedicated to promoting the ideals of famed 19th-century evangelist Dwight L. Moody — planned to propose a $12 million project renovating Moore Cottage and the old bookstore on Moody Street, and constructing housing units and a new welcome center. This was met with concern from residents, who argued the plans would upend the nature of the historic neighborhood.

Following this initial pushback from residents, James Spencer, who is now president of The Moody Center, announced in January 2021 that the center was withdrawing the proposal until it could be reviewed by the newly established committee. Over the course of multiple meetings, the C5 established a mission statement and laid the groundwork for future conversations on specific projects.

The C5 allows residents to maintain “a proactive advisory role in the redevelopment of the campus, encouraging reuse and growth [that] reflects the historic aspects of the campus, and assuring that the town’s long-term goals are considered in the process,” the Northfield town website explains. Representatives of Thomas Aquinas College, which took over ownership of other parts of the long-vacant campus in 2017, is also involved with the committee.

During Tuesday’s meeting, Selectboard Clerk Bernard “Bernie” Boudreau said he felt the intentions of The Moody Center “weren’t to collaborate.”

“I don’t think they have anything in mind as far as to benefit Northfield,” Boudreau commented. “I felt it was very self-centered on their part, everything I saw from them during this time.”

When reached by phone on Thursday, Spencer said as of now, the scope of The Moody Center’s plans — in terms of what is budgeted for — largely involve building maintenance. This includes painting the exterior of buildings, some electrical and plumbing work, and roof repairs.

“We just didn’t feel like participating in the committee was helping anyone, so we decided to take a step back,” Spencer said. “We won’t have anything that a proactive advisory committee would be advising us on.”

Spencer clarified that his purview is specific to the historic properties, which include D.L Moody’s birthplace and the homestead. He said there remain contingencies, such as funding, to move forward.

“I think we have tried in the past to reach out with different individuals in the town to talk through some of these projects,” he noted.

These renovations would allow for an expansion of the existing Prayer Walk, which is a guided tour around the campus. Currently, the tour largely includes only the outside of campus buildings.

“We’re working with our firm to design that out,” Spencer said. “We’re still in a due diligence phase with a lot of that.”

More extensive projects, which include the proposed construction of a new welcome center as well as the new housing units, are ongoing, according to Spencer. However, he said these aren’t within his purview.

With one of the “largest contributors” of the collaboration no longer participating in the 5C, Selectboard members agreed to “revisit” the makeup and purpose of the committee, as well as if it’s worth continuing. Cummings suggested this could take place at the meeting scheduled in May.

“When you have a committee, you have to have a purpose,” said Selectboard member Alex Meisner. “If you don’t have a purpose, then there’s no reason for you to exist in the eyes of public administration. … From what I’ve heard from individuals, there’s just no point to this committee at this point in time.”

Reporter Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne.

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