Waltham City Council Votes To Take Stigmatine Property For HS

WALTHAM, MA — Waltham City Council voted to take the Stigmatine property by eminent domain to use for the new High School.

The vote on Monday night to take the 46 acres of land owned by the religious order came after the years of controversy surrounding the property's future. City Council members went into a closed-door session, the last such session scheduled before the summer, to discuss strategy related to the high school. They were supposed to come out by 7:30 p.m. to hold an open session. Instead, after three hours in executive session they came out with an announcement. There would be a vote in open session.

The final vote was 10 to 4. And the room went wild. Many of the people who had packed the room three hours earlier to show they were eager for an outcome, mostly in favor of the Stigmatine Property on Lincoln Street, cheered, giving the news a standing ovation.

The four councilors who voted against the proposal were Councilors Diane LeBlanc and Bob Logan along Dan Romard and Carlos Vidal.

This comes after years of back and forth on just where to place the new high school and multiple clear statements from the Stigmatines saying they did not wish to sell.

Throughout the process, the School Committee studied and eventually dismissed a number of other locations, including the Fernald property which is owned by the city but has environmental concerns. They also dismissed expanding in place at the current high school spot, saying it would not only disrupt learning at the high school, but also that space would be better served to use for other needs as the entire district grows.

In addition, an ambitious, state-of-the-art education plan developed by the school department calls for a campus-type of experience so other spots around town wouldn't work, the groups studying the spaces available argued.

While the Stigmatine property has been the number one choice for the School Committee and sub committee and the mayor and a number of families and community members for a while, not everyone is happy about taking it by eminent domain.

The Stigmatines described the process as coercive in a statement.

"The Mayor’s efforts to acquire the Stigmatine property for the high school have been coercive and relentless. No one is doubting or discounting the need for a new high school in Waltham. We just don’t believe the City should be able to end our existence here in Waltham because it covets our land for its own use. Nor do we believe any Citizen of Waltham should ever be treated the way Stigmatines have been treated by the City throughout this process," they wrote.

"This is our home, our place in the world, our public identity. Our presence and our work are associated with this beautiful expansive property. It is a place where we have provided meaningful and even life-changing ministry for thousands upon thousands of men, women and children through the retreats and other spiritual programs offered at the Espousal Retreat House. It is also the home for our retired priests who are no longer capable of continuing in ministry. We continue to use our property in Waltham as we have for almost 100 years. We wish to continue our ministry here on our property without further interference from the City."

Watch the councilors head into executive session here:

Previously on Patch:

Residents Camp Out At Waltham City Hall For Latest On High School

• Waltham Residents Rally At City Hall With Message About Stigmatine (Feb. 28, 2018)
• Waltham Mayor Lays Out Case For Stigmatine (Sept. 28, 2017)
• City Council Denies Eminent Domain Taking of Stigmatine (May 23, 2017)
• Stigmatine Official: 'Our Property Is Not For Sale' (May 18, 2017)
• Mayor McCarthy: Why I Didn't Speak At The Stigmatine Meeting(May 17, 2017)
• Waltham City Council Committee Rejects Eminent Domain (May 15, 2017)
• Waltham Mayor Requests Eminent Domain of Stigmatine (Feb. 2017)

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File photo up top by Jenna Fisher/Patch