School and campus ideas come into clearer focus

Two-thirds of the 120 residents who responded to a short survey distributed at Town Meeting on March 24 said they preferred a campus layout where the school is concentrated on the north side of campus, freeing up the Smith site for another playing field or green space.

One-third of respondents preferred the current L-shaped configuration, while a single respondent chose the third option of putting the community center on the site of the older Smith wing rather than on the Hartwell side of campus.

Residents also saw the latest round of community center concepts, three of which call for replacing one or two of the pods with the new building and rearranging the parking in the Hartwell area. The fourth option, putting the community center on the west side of campus, preserves the historic Smith gym but would be the most expensive choice due to the cost of renovating all three Hartwell pods and a larger-than-needed community center in a renovated Smith wing. It would also require more parking and create more congestion on that side of campus.

The School Building Committee also presented its latest set of design ideas. Prices ranged from $49 million for Option R (repair only), to $109–$115 million for Option FPC (full project concept) with the optimal number of grade-level hubs and classrooms.

The six school options and four community center options can be considered in various combinations, though if the community center is on the west side, a compact school design would have to be chosen rather than an L-shaped configuration.

Ironically, many who voted against the 2012 school proposal said they were unhappy with trading the L-shaped school for a more compact building on the north side of the ballfield—much like several of the options now under consideration.

Depending on which school and community center options are ultimately chosen, the total up-front cost for the school and community center projects range from $62 million all the way up to $122–$132 million.

“The sheer scale of these investments is, quite frankly, daunting,” said resident Adam Greenberg, adding that the costs have roughly doubled since the 2012 project was defeated, “far and away above rate of inflation.”

Though the economy as a whole has seen low inflation in recent years, this is not the vase in construction, SBC Chair Chris Fasciano said, noting that building prices have been going up by 6–10 percent a year. Data presented in the warrant handbook at Town Meeting reveal that school construction costs in surrounding towns have ranged from $361 per square foot for Wayland High School in 2011, to $482 for the Field School in Weston in 2014, to $594 for the Hastings School in Lexington (completion expected in 2020). Also, unlike the 2012 proposals, the latest Lincoln estimates include costs for site work.

The Finance Committee has determined that the town can borrow up to $100 million without affecting its bond rating. State law limits the town to borrowing $97 million in addition to its current debt. Lincoln would need approval from a municipal oversight board to exceed that limit; the town’s bond advisor said “we would have a reasonable case” for exceeding the limit for a school building project but only if there was “strong consensus among the town,” said FinCom chair Jim Hutchinson.

In 2012, “a lot of people didn’t understand that $29 million from the state was not going to be available again,” said resident Maggy Pietropaolo. “The question is not whether we’re going to  spend at least $50 million on a school. The question is, what do you want to get for your money?”

The SBC will hold another pair of community workshops on Tuesday, April 10 at 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. in the Reed Gym, as well as an update for the Council in Aging on Friday, March 30 at 10 a.m. in Bemis Hall. There will also be a multi-board meeting on the campus projects on Monday, April 30. Meanwhile, those who did not attend Town Meeting or turn in the short campus survey may send comments via email to the SBC. A special Town Meeting to choose a school option will take place on June 9.