SWAMPSCOTT — Potential building sites have been narrowed down, and a timeline has been given for submitting designs to the state, but on-site building configurations and potential budgets have been largely left out of previous discussions on Swampscott’s school building project.
Tuesday, June 16, from 7-8:30 p.m., the Swampscott School Building Committee will hold a virtual public forum with Lavallee Brensinger Architects, the firm designing the school, and Hill International Inc., which is managing the project on behalf of the town. The meeting will cover conceptual design options for the potential building sites chosen, as well as preliminary budget discussions.
The school building project is the town’s bid to replace Hadley Elementary School on Redington Street. Of course, a new school will not become a reality unless approved at town meeting in 2021, but, if approved, the project is expected to be largely paid for by the state.
The meeting will be broadcast on Zoom. To join the meeting, visit zoom.us/j/92228839865?pwd=ZU4xR0VYVzI0MmFJUHRDbXdOd1NPUT09#success. The password is 174052. The meeting will also be broadcast on Youtube at www.youtube.com/c/swampscottpublicschools and on the town’s online television network, which can be accessed by visiting tv.swampscottps.org, and may also be watched on cable TV, channel 15 for Comcast and channel 40 for Verizon.
According to Christina Colella, a member of the school building committee, those who tune in will get a chance to see “sketches of what the different building configurations could look like on each site and hear the budget estimates.”
“Come ask questions, give your opinion, and let your voice be heard. We need you,” Colella said.
The school building committee narrowed down potential sites for a new school in April, with architects having evaluated sites based on a number of criteria, especially traffic considerations. Potential sites were narrowed to five: the current Hadley Elementary School, the Department of Public Works building on Paradise Road, Swampscott Middle School, Phillips Park, and Stanley School on Whitman Road. However, architects suggested the DPW and Phillips Park options be eliminated due to poor projected traffic conditions.
Of the three sites deemed optimal by architects, Hadley has a current enrollment of 323 students, and the site can handle a traffic load of 290 to 305 cars entering school grounds. The site has the benefit of being in the rough center of the residences of the town’s student population, but there has been concern about “significant queueing” of cars at the intersection of Humphrey Street and Redington Street entering the school.
Swampscott Middle School has a current enrollment of 725 students and can handle 650 to 690 cars entering the site. The school has a designated pickup lane, on-site parking for staff, and a brand new snack shack, but there is limited accessibility due to steep grades, which also can cause a problem with excessive running water.
Stanley School has a current enrollment of 240 students and can accommodate 215 to 230 cars. The site has existing long-term staff parking, and the town-owned grounds are much bigger than the current building’s footprint. However, there is a lack of pedestrian signage and crosswalks in the area, which would have to be addressed if the site were chosen.
October is when a submission of a “preferred schematic design” is due to the Massachusetts School Building Authority. Prior to then, the school building committee will narrow its conceptual design options to one. If accepted by the MSBA, more specific designs will be submitted to the state by next June, when the MSBA will vote on a final project proposal. The town will vote on the project in September of next year.
The project website can be reached at sites.google.com/swampscott.k12.ma.us/sbc/home.
