PEABODY — The city is seeking state help for building projects at two elementary schools.
Last month, the School Committee approved submitting two statements of interest to the Massachusetts School Building Authority. The top priority is for renovations to the Welch Elementary School and the second is for a feasibility study for renovations to or the replacement of the Center Elementary School.
The City Council is scheduled to discuss the statements of interest at its meeting Thursday night.
“The top priority is for new and needed windows and heating and ventilation work at the Welch School,” said School Committee member Beverley Ann Griffin Dunne. “The second request is for an examination of the Center School and whether it needs to be renovated, repaired, or rebuilt. If we get the okay from the MSBA, a feasibility study would be the best way to begin to handle that.”
If the MSBA approves one or more of the proposed projects, the projects would be eligible for up to 56 percent reimbursement from the state if the city were to move forward with financing.
Based on past projects at the McCarthy and Burke elementary schools, Mayor Edward A. Bettencourt Jr. estimated the work at the Welch would come in with a total price tag between $3 million to $4 million.
“My feeling is that those two schools definitely need attention and I fully support the proposals,” said the mayor.
Once the council okays the statements of interest, Bettencourt said they will be submitted to the MSBA. He said it will likely be the fall before Peabody hears from the state.
Last year, the city council backed four projects that were turned down by the MSBA, including work at the Welch, Burke, and Center schools.
The fourth proposal was for a $10-$15 million renovation project at the Kiley Brothers Memorial School, which most recently housed the school administration.
If the project had moved forward, the school would have reopened to students as part of a redistricting effort to ease school overcrowding.
With the Kiley School off the table as a viable option, Dunne said the school committee now has to consider both the future of the building and redistricting plans.
“We had some talks about what will happen with the Kiley building two weeks ago, but the discussions about school safety have taken precedence,” she said. But, she said the fate of the building and redistricting will be topics of discussion in the near future.
Two years ago, the MSBA approved funding for a new roof and other work at the high school.
