Marblehead board recommends building new Glover School

MARBLEHEAD – A special committee formed to determine the fate of the Glover School has recommended to the Massachusetts School Building Authority the structure be demolished and rebuilt.The Glover School Building Committee, together with JCJ Architecture and Municipal Building Consultants, on March 5 submitted the results of their Glover School feasibility study to the state agency.The committee followed a process aimed at identifying the most financially responsible and educationally sound remedy for the facility deficiencies of the Glover and Eveleth schools, according to Patricia Blackmer, the committee chairwoman. The so-called “preferred alternative” recommended calls for a new building on the site for 425 students in grades K-3.At its March 3 meeting, the committee examined the costs and benefits of preserving the shell of the original 1916 building. Following considerable discussion, the committee voted to build a new school as the most cost effective approach which also maximizes design and site plan flexibility, Blackmer said.The committee will make a presentation to the state board at the Massachusetts School Building Authority’s Facilities Subcommittee March 10. The authority’s board of directors will vote on the project at its March 24 meeting.If the state board approves the recommendation, the School Committee will seek town support and full project funding at Town Meeting in May, followed by a debt exclusion override vote in June.The town is eligible for at least 40 percent reimbursement of approved costs associated with the construction project from the state authority.