School Board Stamps Approval for New Middle School

The Windham School Board is officially in campaign mode with one goal in mind: a new junior high facility on London Bridge Road.

That became the overwhelming point of discussion during a Jan. 6 public forum in the Windham High School auditorium. At least 75 residents, many very vocal on the need to act immediately on the district's overcrowding problems, came out to interact with the board.

The issue, as was quickly discovered, is both simple and complex.

The board started with the simple when it explained that the current middle school is at 166 percent capacity, and population estimates are predicting the boom in the Windham population to continue to spike.

Board member Stephanie Wimmer was tasked with the challenge of explaining how that overcrowding is a detriment to the students, not only at the middle school but at Windham Center School and Golden Brook School, which have also far exceeded their limitations.

"Due to the level of overcapacity all schools have begun compromising curriculum offerings," said Wimmer.

Those have included a modification in art and chorus programs, reduced technology offerings and a makeshift classroom in the WMS library.

"We have people in closets, we have children in hallways – there's no more room at the end," said Wimmer.

A new school on the parcel of land also owned by the town next to WHS was deemed the most feasible solution by all board members.

For that to come to fruition, voters will need to approve the plan in two phases. According to business administrator Adam Steel, the board plans on placing an item on the ballot in March asking for the approval of $750,000 in architecture and engineering fees.

"It gets us through a design process to the point where we can have a competitive bid process for a builder," said Steel. "Next December everyone in town will know exactly what we're building.

Steel said that if the board is conservative, the building could be opened by 2015. Aggressively, by the fall of 2014.

"We're not really delaying the project by doing a two-step process," said Steel.

For purpose of the forum, the board presented a preliminary layout as designed by the HL Turner Group out of Concord.

That design showed a building split into two sections. The left side when facing from the front was in a square shape. According to HL Turner representative Paul Becht, that area would be the core side, housing a gymnasium, locker rooms, cafeteria, kitchen, music rooms, main office, guidance, nurse and consumer science.

The right side of the two-floor facility was shaped like a tall rectangle and would contain all of the classrooms.

Becht said it would also contain pods, separating the seventh and eighth graders into four teams.

This is similar to what is done in neighboring Londonderry, where each grade level is split into four teams each.

Becht also said that there is space alotted on their plan for two additional team "pods" to be added, one on each floor.

Getting into the complex side of the debate, the board also said that one of its top concerns was the tax impact.

They presented a method that would keep taxpayers' bill payments steady for the next 15 years.

That plan, detailed in a color-coded chart, would use the Capital Reserve Fund to stash money on the years that the facility bond payments aren't as extreme. That saved money would then cover the more extreme years, keeping the rate level at $731 per year for a $350,000 home

That chart also accounted for a second $22.3 million bond, which they plan to push to voters in 2023. That bond would tackle Golden Brook renovations.

The presentation also said that the $25 million bond, which wouldn't be voted on until March 2013, was comparable to the cost of an addition on the current middle school, which had several problems.

Those problems included the lack of expandability after an addition, the inability to address traffic issues, and the disruption of construction while school is in session.

That addition had been the original recommendation of a facilities committee.

While the taxes would be level during the duration of the new facility bond, Windham resident Margaret Case made sure to explain to the public that taxes would actually be less should the article not be approved.

That said, she was in favor of the plan.

"I think building a separate school is the way to go," said Case.

Former board member Al Letizio Jr. commended the board on a nice piece of work creating the tax rate chart.

He said that residents in town understand that the town can't progress without spending money.

"You just don't go from one point to the other and not spend money on the infrastructure, said Letizio.

He also helped the board to clarify that bonds have diminishing payments, which he said a "lot of people don't understand" because they deal with mortgage payments.

As for the short term, board chair Ed Gallagher said that they do not plan on putting portables on the ballot this year.

"Our understanding is we can get by, perhaps skate by this year," said Gallagher.

He said that should the first article fail in March, something is still going to have to be done.

"That decision would likely be modules," said Gallagher.

The board will need to rouse up public support that a new school is the way to go. Superintendent Henry LaBranche at this point.

But Windham resident Chris McCarthy said that it's only going to get worse and town, and even though everyone is worried about taxes, that there will be an economic impact on not having and maintaining the facilities.

"As far as I'm concerned, this is a need not a want," said McCarthy.

Should the article pass, LaBranche said that grades 3-6 would be redistributed between WCS and WMS, essentially dropping class sizes and helping to solve the problems across three schools.