Public Hearing Scheduled on Middle School Project

The City Council is holding a public hearing on the $110 million middle school building committee on Tuesday, Sept. 8.

Earlier this summer the Middle School Building Committee voted to approve the Schematic Design that will be presented to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) for approval this fall.
The total project budget is now estimated at approximately $110M with the total cost to the city estimated at approximately $60M, according to City Councilor Matt St. Hilaire.

He added that this estimate is significantly lower than the previous total project estimate of $122M and has been described as a “not to exceed” number, with the design firm contending that additional savings could be realized through the final design and construction process.

St. Hilaire is urging residents to participate in the public hearing to ask questions and share their thoughts.

The city council will have to take a vote to approve funding for the project.

The proposed building project calls for the construction of a new four-story, 231,509-square-foot building located on the site of the existing Memorial School Building at 502 Cabot Street. The school would serve 1,395 students in grades five through eight.

The current building would be vacated and demolished in an early phase of the project, allowing for the construction of the new building to get underway on the site.

The school would be open for students in September of 2018 if everything goes as scheduled.