Hildreth Elementary School needs $28 million in repairs. This was the conclusion of the $500,000 feasibility study the town commissioned in 2016. This addresses knocking down and rebuilding the mold-ridden kindergarten wing, moving the mechanicals (heat, plumbing, electrical) that currently reside in the K-wing to the new building, installing sprinklers, fixing the leaky roof, addressing inadequate ventilation, and fixing some ADA compliance issues.
This is the bare minimum it will cost to fix HES. This is not bringing the building down to the studs. It does not add more insulation to the walls. It doesn’t bring the walls up to seismic code. It fixes the leaks in the roof, but will not be a long-term fix for ice dams and thus future leaks. It doesn’t result in educational benefits for our children, nor an adequately sized cafeteria, gym, or library.
Note that this $28 million number does not qualify for the $18 million grant from the Massachusetts School Building Authority. The MSBA requires educational improvements be a part of a renovation. This is why all the projects proposed by the School Building Committee focused on more extensive changes.
There is no way to get around the fact that the elementary school needs $28 million of work. We could push some fixes off to the future, but costs go up every year, not down. The $28 million number is already a year out of date, and each year of delay adds 3 to 5 percent to construction costs, plus unforseen repair costs. After, we’d still be stuck with an inefficient 30-plus-year-old building with inherent problems due to 1980s construction standards.
Building new lets us bypass these problems and puts that money toward a functional, safe, and efficient school we can be proud of. This is the best long-term solution for HES and the town because it carries less risk of further problems developing. With the grant, the $7 million difference between limping along and starting fresh with a new building is only about $26 a month for the average household (assuming a $630,000 house and a 25-year bond).
Nathan Finch
Codman Hill Road
