Activists Call For Rescinding 2023 New Concord Middle School Vote

CONCORD, NH — A new petition has been created calling on Concord’s SAU 8 board of education to rescind its previous vote to build a new middle school on the east side at Broken Ground and, instead, renovate the existing school or rebuild at its current footprint, or find another site.

The petition, created by Robert Mancini earlier this week at Change.org, had 344 signatures as of Friday.

In early December, the board voted 6 to 3 to move the middle school project from South Street to South Curtisville Road.

The petition accused the board of using erroneous and inadequate financial, design, construction, traffic, and safety data to make its decision while overlooking extra costs, including busing, sidewalk construction, parking, and other infrastructure.

“This will result in additional strain on already overburdened taxpayers and adverse effects on the environment,” the petition stated.

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They said the $176 million estimated price tag was “a significantly large amount of taxpayer money,” adding, a “pause and change in the process will not adversely impact the reception of building aid.” The petition noted two board members, including one who was appointed (although previously elected to the board for many years, a fact left out of the petition), voted for the project at the final meeting of their terms. The petition also said the decision was made “in direct opposition to the clearly, conspicuously, publicly expressed majority opinion.”

The petition called upon the board to rescind the previous vote and revisit rebuilding at the current site, rebuilding at another location, or renovating the school.

A prior parcel, owned by CenterPoint Church, off Clinton Street near Langley Parkway, was opposed by many residents. There are few vacant sites in Concord that could be used for a new middle school.

The petition organizers also included a QR Code to promote the effort.

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