Disclaimer — These are my notes / ruminations on attending the public meeting held by the School Committee on 8/21/2024. Some of the points are facts reported, some are opinion, and all of it may change over time.
I attended the school forum this week at Vets. Very informative. What is immediately apparent is that the teams working on these projects are top notch. I’ll embed a few clips throughout to illustrate.
Key points:
- There has been much made of whether or not there would be air conditioning. I’ll let the experts answer here in this clip.
- Much has been discussed about the project budget and whether we can build it for what was approved. There is good discussion of that point here.
- Here’s the Pilgrim walkthrough: Presentation from SaaM
- Here is the Tollgate walkthrough: Presentation from Saccoccio
Highlights:
- Top notch team. SaaM is the architect for Pilgrim, Saccoccio is the architect for Tollgate. Dimeo is the GC for both projects. Left Field is the OPM (owner’s project manager). Everyone involved is incredibly experienced.
- The designs are incredible, these are truly 21st century schools and will take us well into the future
- The designs have struck a balance between educational spaces, athletics, art, music, science, and more.
- Timeline:
- Design Phase – March ‘24 – March ‘25 (we are here)
- Building Construction – March ‘25 – June ‘27
- Move in – July ‘27 – August ‘27
- Demo of existing buildings – June ‘27 – December ‘27
- Project completion – August ‘28
Lowlights
- There were many public comments about the need for more investment in athletics (additional turf fields, two gyms, etc.). It’s important to note that the project has $28M in contingency $ for the unknowns. As they get further into the project, money can be released back which would allow for more turf, lights, etc.
- Still a lot of misinformation out there about these projects, realistic expectations, etc. These kind of forums are incredibly important and I hope to see more of this as we progress.
