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What will happen to the existing South building if the town votes YES?M.G.L. c. 71, §71 established that the School Committee has exclusive control over school property. Once the SC determines the South School is no longer used for “school purposes,” control reverts to the town, under the jurisdiction of the Select Board, subject to the Town Charter. M.G.L. c. 71, §71 For the purpose of promoting the usefulness of public school property the school committee of any town may conduct such educational and recreational activities in or upon school property under its control, and, subject to such regulations as it may establish, and, consistently and without interference with the use of the premises for school purposes, shall allow the use thereof by individuals and associations for such educational, recreational, social, civic, philanthropic and like purposes as it deems for the interest of the community. The affiliation of any such association with a religious organization shall not disqualify such association from being allowed such a use for such a purpose. The use of such property as a place of assemblage for citizens to hear candidates for public office shall be considered a civic purpose within the meaning of this section. A school committee shall award concessions for food at any field under its control only to the highest responsible bidder. This section shall not apply to Boston.
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I keep hearing people say this project will impact OMS, but how? That has nothing to do with whether or not we build a new elementary school.The district has identified a need in two K-5 buildings with higher priority than OMS. (MSBA tracks and ranks the condition of all school facilities state-wide).While it’s possible MSBA could skip over K-5 school facilities in favor of an OMS project, no statement of interest has yet been submitted for OMS. And, if a second K-5 school vote fails, it would be unlikely MSBA would invite the district into the grant program for an OMS feasibility study knowing the recent history of local approval.
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How is the MSBA using taxpayer money?MSBA has a stream of dedicated revenue stream of one penny of the state's 6.25% sales tax. In their eleven-year history, they have made more than $17.5 billion in reimbursements to school districts. You can learn more about the MSBA's audit and savings programs by clicking here.
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Why can’t we just fix the South School? Isn’t it cheaper to repair what we already have than to build a brand new school?One of the required components of the MSBA grant process is evaluating the cost of “base repair” of school buildings. A repair project for Stoughton would include bringing facilities up to current Code compliance and fixing issues identified in the town’s Facilities Master Plan. In Stoughton’s case, repairing the South School and Wilkins School buildings, estimated by two independent construction cost estimators, will cost $35 million each. This does not include soft costs (architect, project management, temporary classrooms, etc.). Total cost for each repair project would reach $45-50 million. A smaller portion of those costs is potentially eligible for reimbursement through MSBA’s accelerated repair program, which funds roof, window and boiler replacement. The majority of repair costs, including temporary classroom space during construction, would be borne by Stoughton taxpayers. Approaching repairs piecemeal and limping along with the current buildings until the town revisits a new building project in the future is not an option. 521 CMR 3.3.2 dictates that any repair amounting to more than 30% of the building’s full and fair cash value will require that the entire building be brought into full compliance with Architectural Access Board accessibility regulations. Several school project opponents suggested managing the cost by breaking it into smaller projects. However, the 30% threshold is calculated as the aggregate over any three-year period. Repairs cannot be segmented. Therefore, any small or large repair project must be considered with these values in mind: For the South School, roof repairs alone are estimated at $1.32 million. Replacing only 40% of the windows - $1.66 million. HVAC replacement - $3 million. Costs for repairing the Wilkins School break down the same way, such that any single repair of either building could, and likely would, trigger a full building renovation. Although construction costs of base repair would certainly be an obstacle, that may not be the biggest. Repairing and renovating each of these school buildings to create fully-accessible space would require expanding hallways, doorways, restrooms, etc. – borrowing from areas currently used as classrooms. Simply put, repairing the existing school buildings is foolhardy not solely because of cost; the town would also finish the job with fewer classrooms to educate children.
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How does MSBA choose schools to support and how many are offered state funding annually?School projects are selected by MSBA based on need. School districts submit statements of interest in April of each year, identifying facilities deficiencies. MSBA then selects a handful of schools based on priority need, but they also try to spread funding around geographically and demographically. However, only a handful of school district are invited into feasibility study each year. Below are the districts with “project scope and budget” approvals over the past two years.
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Why can’t we just build a less expensive school? This project is too extravagant.Of the 30 elementary schools that have been approved by the MSBA in the past four years, 21 have design enrollments over 515 students. The average of those 30 schools is 630 students and 43% have been consolidations of two smaller schools. The trend in educational design has been for moderately sized schools designed to be welcoming neighborhoods with light and airy common spaces as opposed to long, dark corridors that are the hallmark of 50+ year old schools. This allows the town to offer more opportunities to more children. Importantly, class sizes will not be impacted by the overall enrollment of one school.
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The town already voted on this. Why are we voting again?By voting no, the town opted to leave nearly $48 million of state funding on the table, requiring us to finance the elementary school project entirely out of pocket. There is not a solution to the current South School problem that will cost significantly less than the $66 million debt exclusion that was voted down on June 11. By turning down the state funding, this will require taxpayers to carry the burden of a LESS OPTIMAL solution to the problem (such as modular units at the other elementary schools, which comes with increased bussing needs and other soft costs) rather than constructing a 21st century elementary school that will increase property values and make Stoughton a more desirable place to live. Additionally, the alternative solution still leaves us with costs to repair the Wilkins School and puts us at the end of the list with the MSBA for future projects. You can learn more about the alternatives in the October 23 building committee meeting here. The June 11 vote had only 23% of registered voters show up to the polls, the average age of voters was 60, and there was a very active "NO" campaign spreading misinformation about the tax increase and false hope to voters that there is a solution to this problem that equals "no new taxes" - which is simply untrue. A second vote would help our campaign to ensure that voters are more educated, and that we see a higher voter turnout, especially among families.
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How much will this impact my taxes?The town's financial advisor estimates that the average increase will be $0.55 per $1,000 of home value - less than $290 annually for the majority of taxpayers (based on the average home value of $524K in Stoughton). For those with a home value of $400K or less, the tax increase will be $220 per year or less. This is based on the projected 30 year bond at FY2025 rates, and validated by Hilltop Securities. This also assumes the total cost of the project inclusive of a contingency (which is not expected to be fully spent). There are also available statutory tax exemptions that qualifying residents can apply for. For specific information based on your home's assessed value, click here to use our calculator.
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What will happen to the South and Jones School properties if this passes, and those schools close?On January 7, 2025, the Town of Stoughton Select Board issued the following letter, stating that the properties should be turned over to the Select Board, and "upon any sale of those properties, any net proceeds should be used to offset the costs of the South Elementary School Project." Read more here.
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How can I learn more about this project?There will be a Community Forum open to all, on January 21 at 7pm at Stoughton High School. We welcome you to join and listen, ask questions and get educated in advance of the April 1 vote. More info & RSVP HERE. Forthcoming forums and info sessions will likely also be scheduled, and if you'd like to set up a private session with the Building Committee or anyone else to learn more, please contact us!
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If we redistrict, won’t that solve the problem of overcrowding?No. Even with redistricting, our schools will still be over capacity and will need to install modular units at the Dawe, Gibbons and Hansen schools to accommodate our growing student population. This is also assuming the South School is able to be repaired and remain open, which will not be the case. We will need to redistrict from 5 elementary schools down to 4 if this debt exclusion does not pass.
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Does the $114 million ($66M taxpayer impact) cost include the traffic study and any necessary improvements including the bridge to Park St, a street light, street widening, sidewalks etc.?Yes. The $114 million project cost is “all inclusive,” including all onsite and offsite permitting and improvements (e.g. Park Street traffic improvements), and everything down to furniture, furnishings and equipment. Although we don’t yet know the exact nature of offsite traffic improvements, the $114 project cost includes the estimated cost of anticipated improvements along with a sufficient contingency for anything not included in that estimate. This amount was determined by two independent cost estimators and reviewed and approved by MSBA.
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If the debt exclusion does NOT pass, what implications will that have for the district?The district is exploring redistricting regardless of whether or not this debt exclusion passes. The redistricting will take effect in the 2028-29 school year, and if we vote NO again, the redistricting will be for all students into the FOUR remaining elementary schools (Dawe, Gibbons, Hansen & Wilkins) with modular units being placed at Dawe, Gibbons & Hansen to accommodate the increased population. The South School will close regardless. For more information on what the modular units might entail, including visuals and costs, please review the building committee meeting from October 23 here or the proposed site plans below:
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I am a senior citizen or veteran with limited income. Can I get any exemptions from these pending tax increases if I vote YES?YES! Please see here to learn more about statutory tax exemptions for qualifying individuals: Personal Exemptions | Stoughton, MA
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How much funding is the state offering us and why can’t we use those funds toward a different/ smaller scale project?As part of the Feasibility Study, addition/renovation of both the South and Wilkins Schools was evaluated, along with six (6) new construction options. The Building Committee recommended Option NC1A (below). Price estimates from construction cost estimators for all options were as follows (construction costs only): South School Base Repair (non-reimbursable) $35,717,382 Wilkins School Base Repair (non-reimbursable) $35,435,753 South School Addition/Renovation (Option AR1) $60,583,114 Wilkins School Addition/Renovation (Option AR3) $85,083,646 New Construction Option NC1 (225 students) $63,526,592 New Construction Option NC1A (515 students) $86,049,823 (recommendation) New Construction Option NC2 (225 students) $64,904,741 New Construction Option NC2A (515 students) $87,581,100 New Construction Option NC3 (225 students) $65,336,595 New Construction Option NC3A (515 students) $88,060,938 The state is currently offering us nearly $48 million in funding, but if we opt to pursue a project other than the recommendation above, this would need to be re-evaluated and likely started over with the MSBA.
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Which figure is correct, $114M or $113M when discussing the cost of the project we are voting on?The total project cost is $114 million, but that includes the $1 million already appropriated for the Feasibility Study (a portion of which is reimbursable by MSBA, as long as we don't need to conduct a second Feasibility Study). For MSBA purposes, the $1 million is included in the total project cost, even though it has already been appropriated, and mostly spent.
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