LYNN — In the wake of last spring’s failed vote to build two new middle schools, the city is trying again to replace Pickering Middle School.
The Lynn School Committee is scheduled to vote today to submit a statement of interest to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) for Pickering Middle School.
“I think clearly there’s a real need to take a second look at how we need to replace Pickering,” said Mayor Thomas M. McGee. “It’s desperately needed and I think it’s important for us to get back in the process and get in a discussion with the community.”
McGee, who also serves as chairman of the school committee, said the first step is to put a statement of interest into the MSBA, with the hope that would move forward. The next step, he said, would be to engage the community on the importance of replacing Pickering.
McGee said the larger discussion would be on what replacement might entail, including location of a new school and whether that would include a two-school option again.
“I think it was a strong vote in opposition to the plan we had last year,” McGee said. “Obviously, we need to engage the community again and find the common ground.”
Last time, the process involved looking at a lot of different options for replacement — officials will need to revisit and review all of those options again, McGee said.
The mayor said he doesn’t think the failed school vote will affect whether the city is invited back into the MSBA program.
“I think the MSBA knows the need for the Pickering School and during the discussions we’ve had over the past few weeks, they’re more than happy to have us back at the table again,” he said. “They’ve been receptive and responsive and we look forward to working with them to find the right solution for the city of Lynn.”
Jared Nicholson, a member of the school committee, said Pickering is the school with the largest need for replacement in the city. He said there’s an overcrowding issue at Pickering and there’s also an issue with the condition of the building, including heating problems.
“In terms of the process, this is the first step to try again,” Nicholson said. “The School Committee has to take a vote. The (City) Council has to take a vote to tell the MSBA that this is a need and priority of the city.
“At this point, it’s not about a location for a new school. It’s just saying that we’re going to start looking again. This will be the first step in the process where the city will put together a committee and look at the feasibility of options.”
Nicholson said to avoid another failed vote, there are ways to manage the process differently from last time, including getting the community more involved so officials can benefit from their input earlier in the process and try to build more of a consensus earlier on.
“We have to get our fiscal house in order and doing that will give the city, I hope, more confidence in what we’re asking from taxpayers,” Nicholson said.
Tom Iarrobino, secretary of the school committee, said two schools were looked at last time because the projection of student enrollment precluded having one middle school, which would have been the largest middle school in the Commonwealth.
Last March, voters said no to a nearly $200 million proposal to building two new middle schools, rejecting the measure by a decisive margin. The first question, which asked voters to approve the construction of the schools, failed 63 to 37 percent. The second question, which sought approval to pay for them, lost 64 to 36 percent.
If approved, the city would have built a 652-student school near the Pine Grove Cemetery and Breeds Pond Reservoir on Parkland Avenue. A second school would have housed 1,008 students on McManus Field on Commercial Street.
The new schools would have added an additional $200 to the average tax bill for a single-family home for the next 25 years.
