The Big Issue: The Hingham Middle School Project

Residents for and against the proposed $60.9 million middle school are expected to attend tonight’s special town meeting.

Hingham officials will ask voters to increase taxes to raise money to pay for the proposed new Middle School.

Although the cost is $60.9 million, the MSBA  has agreed to pay for about 44 percent of the cost if approved.

Supporters of the Middle School Project believe rebuilding a new school is the best option, as the existing one is deteriorating.  Those opposing the new school, are suggesting it be renovated at a cheaper cost.

Voters will be asked to approve the project at  tonight’s meeting and to raise property taxes to fund the project at a general election  on Saturday Oct. 29. For the project to pass, it needs a two-thirds vote  tonight and a majority at the polls.

“Every dollar we spend on this project is a dollar spent by the tax payers… we spent a lot of time on it,” Raymond Estes, School Building Committee Chair said last month.

Along with the Middle School Project,  voters at the special town meeting next month will be asked to allocate $935,000  pay for the reconstruction of the deteriorating Hingham High School track, tennis courts and athletic field.

According to the School Committee, the tennis courts will be renovated and will cost $60,000, the new track will cost $600,000 and phase two of the project, which includes fixing the field draining issues, will cost $275,000.

Hingham School Committee Chair Linda Hill has highlighted the many examples of why the High School Fields are unsafe for both Hingham athletes and spectators. According to Hill, one end of the track is three feet higher than other, the tennis courts are cracking, and the grass fields have problems draining after storms.  The wood bleachers, which were made in 1954 are also falling apart.

Hill said the poor drainage to these fields have caused delays to sports, the deterioration of the tennis courts has caused the tennis team to play their games out of town and the badly worn fields have caused injuries to players and forced the lacrosse team to train in nearby towns such as Cohasset.

“The fields will only continue to deteriorate, and the cost will continue to rise,” Hill said last month.

Hingham voters will also get the chance tonight to ask the town to reopen the swap area at the town dump, and decide on if a private company can lease the town’s bathhouse.

The town would like a private company such as a small food vendor to lease the town bathhouse and construct new bathrooms.  

The Special Town Meeting needs at least 300 residents to attend in order to hold an official meeting and Assistant Town Administrator Betty Foley expects a full house tonight

According to Foley, additional parking for the Special Town Meeting will be held at the South Shore Baptist Church on Main Street and the town will have shuttle buses transporting elderly residents from the church to the Hingham High School.