Superintendent-Director Aaron Polanski held an Old Colony Building Project Update Informational Session on May 14, where he and other school representatives offered insights and updates into the continuing proposal for an update to the school building.
There was a multi-town vote last November, where the proposed plan for a new Old Colony building was rejected by voters. On possible alternatives to the original proposal, Polanski said, “When we went out to the public with our initial vote, we do not believe we did a very good job at Old Colony of making clear that there was no zero-cost option.” He added the school building needs “major investments,” where “every option will significantly impact our taxpayers.” He stressed that the “no” vote does not eliminate costs from taxpayers, but instead, shifts the responsibility away from state assistance and 100% to the taxpayer.
The Superintendent-Director said, “The real question is not whether we spend money, it’s whether we spend it with MSBA (Massachusetts School Building Authority) support or entirely on our own.” He stressed the cost must be paid and can either be done with MSBA help or entirely resting on taxpayer funding, with the longer the wait time, the greater the “construction cost escalation.” He stated there is a Tax Calculator Overview on the school’s project website, oldcolonybuildingproject.com.
In the breakdown town-by-town and based off enrollment numbers, Acushnet is estimated to contribute $52 million, Carver is estimated to contribute $27 million, Lakeville is estimated to contribute $37 million, Mattapoisett is estimated to contribute $11 million, and Rochester is estimated to contribute $22 million. The total cost of the project sits at $288 million with state grant funding of $129 million with an additional $11 million in incentives.
Polanski moved on to discuss the risks of “walking away.” Firstly, he stated the MSBA could withdraw support and not “re-enter.” Already expended feasibility study costs would not be recouped and would need to be re-spent in future studies. He added construction costs continue to rise as well.
The administrator said, “A revote is not ignoring the previous outcome, it is providing taxpayers with information relative to the financial impacts of a no vote that were not clearly articulated in our first round of conversations.” He again pressured that a faster approval would reduce costs and ensure state assistance, though again added, “we did not do a good enough job explaining the fact that there was no zero-cost option.”
Another no-vote option would necessitate a long-term repair cost, with estimated costs being $157 million to taxpayers. He said it would also potentially negatively impact school enrollment, would not include HVAS, plumbing, or other additions, and would yield higher annual utility costs.
Polanski said there would be an open house at Old Colony on Saturday, June 6 at 10:00 am. There will be another Building Project Vote on June 20 in the five towns represented by the school.
Old Colony Building Project Update
By Sam Bishop