Talk Is… Costly

It’s time for some real(ly real) “long range planning.” That’s a phrase that gets talked about a lot, but seldom put into action– which is why I’m running to be your next Selectman. As the saying goes, “talk is cheap,” but in this case, talk is actually costly unless we get serious about proper planning.

On Jan 10, 2017 the BOS, School Committee, and Finance and Advisory Board came together in a Tri-Board meeting. It was interesting to watch (and certainly encouraging to see the three boards collaborating- so much can be accomplished like this!), but in the end I was left to ponder the future of a new school with more questions than answers.

As a tax payer and parent, I am very vested in the renovation or complete re-build of a new Stoneham High School. The current building is in poor condition. The school is not only vital to the hopes and dreams of our children, it also reflects our community’s view on education and supports the property values of people who have invested in our town. A school is one of the first things people consider when deciding to purchase a home, so a superior school system has far-reaching implications.

During the Tri-Board meeting the subject of the new high school was raised. I was disappointed to hear that for the fourth year in applying for a grant with the MSBA (Massachusetts School Building Authority), Stoneham was not accepted into the program, thus pushing financial assistance for a new school back another year without any real promise for future acceptance. In this last MSBA application cycle, 89 Statements of interest were filed from 58 districts. The MSBA has approximately $500M in grant money. Some of the larger school projects that got accepted this year are Waltham High School with a price tag between $283 million and $300 million and a new or renovated high school in Somerville that could be as much as $200 million.

These two schools depleted the budget so much that the Northeast Regional Vocational Technical High School is getting pushed back to next year. That project is expected to cost around $200 million with about a 70% match from the State.

In the discussion Selectman Wilson noted that when the MSBA toured Stoneham High School, the officials indicated that they are more likely to approve money for school build/rebuild projects in communities that
are increasing their school enrollment. That was difficult to hear because Stoneham schools have lost approximately 25% of their enrollment over the last 10 years. At our highest level we had approximately 3,000 students. Currently our enrollment is approximately 2,300.

Dr. Les Olson suggested that after hearing this disappointing news, Stoneham might begin a conversation around renovating/rebuilding the high school without the help from the MSBA. Dr. Olsen estimated that a renovation might cost around $60 million and a rebuild could cost as much as $120,000 million. (Actual numbers won’t really be known until the school invests in a feasibility study.) Therefore, he proposed authoring a Warrant Article for the Annual Town Meeting in May to fund this study at a cost of (at a cost of between $100,000 & $125,000). School Committee member Shelly MacNeill noted it would be a good idea to consider addressing all of the school’s capital needs across all of their properties, including Stoneham’s failing playgrounds and fields, and to roll those needs into the debt exclusion– either driving up the cost of the override or decreasing the remedial work at the high school.

There are a lot of challenges that come to mind with a renovation of the existing High School, but for starters, one concern is demolition in an occupied building. While not impossible, it is very costly and doesn’t add value to the final project. When the middle school was built, it was constructed as a new building, and then over the summer tied into the existing Central Elementary School. Then heavy construction equipment knocked the old middle school over and the debris was hauled away. In a renovation like this, sections of the building will be closed off as crews will remove ceilings, walls, windows, duct work, electrical and plumbing by hand, and then carted off in small piece as the building is stripped back to the studs. Once demo is complete, massive construction will begin.

All this work that is very noisy and dirty will be ongoing right next to classrooms where children will be studying. Once a section is rebuilt, another phase will begin the same process until the building is complete. Deliveries will be made to the school while it’s in session and cranes will be adding equipment to the roof.

Although it’s not known at this point, temporary classrooms are a very real possibility, which would drain even more money from the $60 million potential budget. I don’t even want to think about the disadvantages our students would face in a situation like this where new technology would be practically nonexistent.

If I consider the middle school construction, the Town paid $17 million of a $40 million, 80,000 sq. ft. addition. The average expense passed along to the average tax payer was $240 per year. Therefore, a $60 million renovation would cost, at minimum, $850 per home per year for 20 years. A new school at a cost of up to $120 million would cost more than $1,700 per year. My biggest concern with this approach is that we will be unable to convince more than half of the voters to take this route. (You can spread the cost over 30 years, but the overall cost is much more and you limit the amount of debt a town can handle for an
additional 10 years.)

This scenario is the unfortunate consequence of not having a long range plan. For years we have been told that Stoneham will be received into the MSBA program. As a result, we have not invested large amounts
of money into a school that would be demolished. Because the solution has not happened fast enough, Stoneham has been in the position of putting very expensive band aids on the building. Last year we had to
spend $600,000 on new boilers to replace two 60 year old boilers. This past October, Town Meeting approved $60,000 for wi-fi– and we could be tearing the ceilings out in a year or two. It’s time for a clear cut
direction with input from the Town citizens that deserve to have ALL of the facts on the table, so that we as a communities can make informed, critical decisions.

At the same Tri-Board meeting, Selectman Wilson also mentioned that the Capital Committee is looking to bond the capital request. In fact, back in October the Capital Committee requested $1.5 million that the Town would have had to borrow. Actually, take a step back and look at the bigger picture: just this past summer our trash contractor went bankrupt, costing the Town an additional $400,000 a year without increasing services. Stoneham Arena is looking for millions to fix the floor, and the school is going for a $60 million override, while the Retirement Board wants to be fully funded in five years at a cost of about $5 million a year from the budget. How is this going to be paid for in the long run??

We need to start prioritizing and planning, and stop reacting and acting surprised.

If you want to learn more or have a larger discussion, I’d love to meet you at my campaign kick-off:

When: Monday, January 30 at 7 PM – 10 PM

Where: Melissa’s @407 Main

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