Madison Moves Forward With $34.2 Million School Project

MADISON, CT — After a lengthy discussion the Madison Board of Selectmen voted to approve and send to the Board of Finance a proposal to demolish the existing Ryerson ElementarySchool at 982 Durham Road in Madison and the design, construction, furnishing and equipping of a new kindergarten through third grade elementary school on the same parcel as the existing school, according to recent meeting minute.s

Pending Board of Finance approval, there will be the setting a Town Meeting and Referendum to approve the project.

The project will cost $34.284 million and will be covered by the issuance of bonds. The building will be 61,430-square-feet and accommodate 333 students, according to meeting minutes. Other particulars include: eighteen general classrooms, one art and one music classroom, a gymnasium, platform, STEAM classroom, media center, intervention spaces, special education resources, administrative spaces, cafeteria, supporting spaces, and related site improvements.

The Town anticipates applying to the State of Connecticut for school building project grants to offset in part the cost of project, and for a waiver of the maximum square footage per pupil allowance for school building project grant computation purposes. The Town anticipates that it will receive State of Connecticut school building project grants for the project in the estimated range of approximately $4,000,000 (if no such waiver is obtained from the State) to $5,700,000 (if such a waiver is obtained).

Referendum Date

A referendum would be held on Tuesday, September 26, 2017, between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. The aforesaid resolution will be placed on the ballots under the following heading:

"SHALL THE TOWN OF MADISON APPROPRIATE $34,284,000 FOR DEMOLITION OF THE EXISTING RYERSON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, FURNISHING AND EQUIPPING OF A NEW KINDERGARTEN THROUGH THIRD GRADE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ON THE SAME PARCEL AS THE EXISTING SCHOOL, AND AUTHORIZE THE ISSUANCE OF BONDS AND NOTES IN AN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO FINANCE THE PORTION OF THE APPROPRIATION NOT DEFRAYED FROM GRANTS (AN ANTICIPATED NET PROJECT COST OF BETWEEN $28,584,000 AND $30,284,000)?"

Very lengthy Discussion

DISCUSSION: First Selectman Banisch stated that the Board of Selectmen has been asked by several residents to send this item back to the Board of Education to reconsider

their plan. He called on Superintendent Scarice to address these comments. Superintendent Scarice stated that it is heartening to hear sincere comments from the community, especially when they are passionate about the education system in the Town.

He stated that the process has been ongoing for two and one-half years and the Town is facing real, complex problems. The problems are beyond any overly simplified solutions and the Board of Education has hit these problems head-on.

The BOE has considered three questions: 1. How to address the declining emollment, 2. How to address the
facilities' needs and 3. How to create learning spaces to support an instructional program that will prepare students for the world that they will enter. He stated that the world is different now than it was for those in the room when they graduated and that there is an acknowledgement to the fact that teachers need to change how they teach.

He stated that modernized and flexible learning spaces are therefore needed. The BOE debated the options and enlisted the help of experts; also, Public Hearings were provided to inform the public. The initial 12 plans were considered and adjusted to the get to the point where they are now. He noted that the community had critiques and comments about the different plans that were initially proposed and that these comments were also considered in the evolution of the change of plans.

Superintendent Scarice stated that a facilities study which considered all upgrades needed to every school building in the Town was funded and reviewed. Again, these are complex issues which require complex solutions.

He stated that no one advocates more for the instructional competence of the school system than himselfbut that this cannot be met without the proper facilities. The Board of Education has now arrived at a plan of how to move forward. He stated that the plan needed to address all of these issues is a complex plan. The BOE has committed to not saddling the Town with an unused facility that would create a burden in the future (i.e.
like Academy School); the Board has reduced staff by one teacher for every 20 students less in emollment, and reducing administrators and support staff. The Board is committed to retracting the size of its footprint i.e. by reducing the number of school buildings.

Also, the Board has committed to not kicking the can further down the road by finding short- term band-aids. He stated that he could ensure the community that there will be a plan for all facilities, there will not be problems posed by the former Academy School, the schools will be reduced from six building to five buildings and the schools will be outfitted with 21st century security systems to the elementary school, 21st century energy systems, appropriate learning spaces, etc. Superintendent Scarice stated that this is an appropriate plan to bring to the community and the plan simply was to bring this appropriate plan to the community for a vote at referendum.

Selectman Wilson thanked Superintendent Scarice for his· comments and added that he was a member of the Board of Education when this process started and the BOE committed to not degrading the quality of education as a result of this plan, or while the project was being completed. No proposal, which may detract from the education of the children in Madison was considered.

He thanked the Superintendent and the BOE for following through on this promise. Selectman Wilson stated that the BOE has considered upwards of 30-40 project ideas but that only 12 were considered to not adversely impact the students. With that said, the current plan seems like a relevant one to consider at referendum.

Selectman Wilson stated that although it may seem right for the Board of Selectmen to intervene and stop the process at its current point, he felt that it was absolutely not appropriate for the BOS to do so. He added that it was not appropriate for the BOS to take the vote away from the people ofthe Town. He stated that he felt the
proposal was a reasonable compromise born of dozens of different considerations and variables, including financial impact. There was some concern this strategy may be stalled between phases, however, this is phase one of a two-phase process. Once the first referendum is successfully navigated, the second referendum will be brought to the Town for a vote. Also, the capital planning process will address maintenance items for all of the schools in Town.

Selectman Goldberg stated that the Town Charter manages the roles of the Board of Selectmen and the townspeople. It is not the role of the BOS to prevent an item to go to the voters for approval or denial. The test of whether an item should go to the Town for a vote is whether the proposal is well-researched, studied, documented and the product of transparent and lengthy public process. The BOS needs to determine ifthe issue is well-framed for the public. He stated that he congratulated and thanked the BOE for presenting a proposal which meets these criteria and added that he would support bringing this item to the public for their vote.

Selectman Murphy thanked the public for their passionate feedback throughout this process. He also thanked the BOE and the Superintendent for their efforts. He added that the process has been open and transparent and that there has been plenty of opportunity for public comment. Selectman Murphy stated that as a father of three, he aclmowledged the hardship that might be felt by the students with this proposed disruption. Change is hard, but it is needed.

If the issues are left umesolved then funds will be expended to maintain out-of-date facilities. He added that he was in support of the second option which would have moved forward the project as one phase with one referendum; he also noted that the BOE members voted down party-lines. In the end, he stated that he would
support the recommendation of the BOE as he did not feel that he should substitute his judgement for the work completed by the BOE and that in the end, the voters should have the voice in this process.

Selectman Hale stated that this is not the first time that the Town has conducted a facilities study. The last study resulted in the building of Daniel Hand High School. Just after the high school was completed, the Polson School had a $3.5 million renovation. The Jeffery School has been added on to and renovated twice. Both Jeffery and Island Ave. Schools have modular classrooms. The Town has a history of letting the voters decide on these issues. The BOE has done a fantastic job on educating the public of the process and their decision-making journey. Selectman Hale reiterated that it was time to let the voters decide; no matter what the voters decide, Madison will end up a better place.

First Selectman Thomas Banisch stated that he was in agreement with many of the previous comments and felt it was appropriate to send this item to referendum for a vote and to let the townspeople decide.