Elementary school project at a crossroads

Elementary school project at a crossroads

Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer


TEMPLETON — The proposed Templeton Elementary School Building Project is entering a crucial stage.

According to Superintendent Ruth Miller, if the project does not move forward it could lose the support of the Massachusetts School Building Authority.

“We’re at a critical juncture,” she said.

At the Special Town Meeting later this month, the Elementary School Building Committee will ask voters for a $500,000 debt exclusion which would fund the initial schematic and design portion of the project. According to officials, the amount, if garnered, would be reimbursed in part by the MSBA.

As Ms. Miller explained, the town will need to vote for the entire half-million, but will not have to go out to bond anything more than their portion, which totals roughly $200,000. The MSBA needs to see the vote and community support for the project before they will begin sending their reimbursements.


Ms. Miller said she is hoping to fundraise some of the amount needed to reduce the town’s burden.

Should the vote fail at town meeting, Ms. Miller made it clear that the project will no longer have MSBA’s backing and hopes of a new school will effectively be dashed.

“If we don’t get a positive vote on the floor or a ballot vote, we will lose MSBA support,” Ms. Miller explained. “If it doesn’t pass at Special Town Meeting, we’re done.”

Currently, the committee is working through the feasibility stage of the project and they submitted a contract to the Board of Selectmen during a meeting two weeks ago. The document is under review by Town Counsel. In 2009, the committee was awarded $550,000 to complete the feasibility and schematic and design portions of the project, however a protracted search for land, roadblocks, and revised standards set forth by the MSBA have left the committee with only enough funds to complete the feasibility portion, which had to be scaled back to fit the tightened budget.

Concerns were raised at prior selectmen meetings about whether the committee would have enough left over from their previous allotment to cover the feasibility contract. Ms. Miller said there is about $313,000 remaining in that account, which would more than cover the cost of the work and unforeseen expenses.

The vote comes at a decisive time for both the school district and the town.

As local elementary school principal Dr. John Graziano explained, the sites he oversees, Templeton Center School and Baldwinville Elementary, are currently plagued with a number of problems and will need a number of capital improvement projects in the coming years.

“We couldn’t be any more needy with these buildings than we are right now,” he said.

Requests have been submitted for the repair of 109 windows in both schools to get the building up to code, as well as one to replace Templeton Center’s leaking roof and worn hallway carpet.

The schools will also be facing a serious overcrowding issue in the next academic year, with 96 children moving into already cramped buildings.

Incoming classes, due to size,  will soon necessitate additional rooms that are simply not available in buildings already lacking a library and gym.

Officials are also quick to note that neither of the existing elementary campuses have a playground for children to use during recess and handicap accessibility is limited.

There is also asbestos and lead paint present in both schools which is contained now but may present serious health hazards in the future.

“No, it’s not a problem now,” said Dr. Graziano. “ But do you really want your children to go to school in that environment in the year 2014?”

The committee hopes to submit the feasibility study to the MSBA, who will review the site and determine whether the project will fit into one of their model school programs, a designation that will save the town both considerable time and money.

While the project has stalled for several years, Ms. Miller is confident that the support is still out there to complete the process.

“There seems to be a tremendous amount of positivity for a new school in the community,” Ms. Miller said.

On March 11 at 6:30 p.m. the Operations Project Manager and designer will be on hand for a public kickoff meeting hosted by the committee in the Kiva to educate residents about where they are in the process and what the schematic and design portion entails.

“It’s really setting out what the school is going to look like,” said Ms. Miller. “We’ll have something we can put in front of voters.”

There will also be a Town Hall meeting held on March 22 at 10 a.m. to discuss both the new school and biomass boiler system the district hopes to install.

The Special Town Meeting vote has been scheduled for March 29.