The Ball is in Their Court; School Committee Prepares for Selectmen Meeting

Tuesday April 12 is going to be an important day in the future of the Hingham High School Track Project.

Representatives of the School Committee will be appearing before the Selectmen to look for advice and to ascertain whether the $50,000 in funding previously offered by the town is still available to move this long overdue project forward.

Originally proposed in 2005, the improvements needed to bring the field up to scratch have been debated for months with the preferred cost option being a partnership between the Town of Hingham and private funding. 

Initially the plan was to ask for the town to fund the Track Project with a projected cost of $615,000, but this was rejected and so the idea of a 50/50 partnership was born. With the project costs now being brought down to $450,000, the committee are preparing for Tuesday’s meeting in the hope that there will be funding for the work to be able to start in the summer.

With this in mind, the School Committee held a small public meeting Thursday April 7 to discuss Tuesday’s appearance before the Selectmen. It focused primarily on the funding issues and concerns that have been raised by Hingham residents, including whether or not the project to improve the track facilities would include the installation of floodlights and possible parking improvements. 

Over the course of two hours, representatives of prospective donors Hingham High Athletic Boosters and Hingham Sports Partnership were anxious to know how the School Committee would be approaching the Selectmen and what the reduced costs of a refurbished track would mean to the project. While  they didn’t withdraw their offers of funding, it was clear that a purely privately funded project was a less favorable option.

The committee discussed everything from the replacement of bleachers to whether or not a concession stand would be included. The overriding focus was on the sports facilities but what the School Committee are proposing is not intended to make Hingham High School a venue for state athletics meets but to ensure that home fixtures can be fulfilled.

Teams such as the boys tennis don’t play their matches at Hingham High School as the courts are not of a satisfactory standard for competition and there is a concern amongst parents that, in the time taken to debate this project, an entire generation of children has passed through without having access to adequate facilities. 

Tuesday’s meeting with the Selectmen will be able to shed some light on when or if work can start, with the School Committee hoping that the value to the town is not overlooked.