Middle School Estimates Drop
Weston Today photo
Three weeks after receiving estimates for either renovating Weston Middle School or building a new one, on Monday evening the Board of Education heard updated numbers with a cost outlook roughly 10 percent lower.
Below, a comparison of previous and revised high-end estimates for total project costs (before State reimbursements):
| Total Costs | New School | Renovation |
|---|---|---|
| Previous | $143,047,000 | $141,416,000 |
| Revised | $127,569,000 | $127,945,000 |
The revised estimates show a slight advantage to building a new school, just under one half-million dollars.
But in terms of net local costs the advantage goes the other way, to the tune of about $9 million, because reimbursement rates for renovation are double those for new construction.
| Weston Share | New School | Renovation |
|---|---|---|
| Previous | $134,237,000 | $124,494,000 |
| Revised | $115,376,000 | $106,483,000 |
State assistance
Because conceptual designs for both a new and a renovated middle school envision a building roughly 30 percent larger than State specifications, each project’s reimbursement eligibility drops below Weston’s relevant cap.
The updated estimates show Weston getting back about 9½ percent for a new building and around 17 percent for a renovation.
Hope springs that the General Assembly might be persuaded to award the town more generous terms, but if anyone has developed a compelling story to sway legislators in that direction, so far they have kept it to themselves.
The four exceptions approved this year by the legislature were either limited, technical, or in one case directed to a low-income municipality with a struggling school district.
If, however, evidence in Weston shows that building a new school would be cheaper than renovating (as the new estimates have it by a hair), there may at least be a chance to have the higher renovation rate applied to new construction.
Timing
For months, the school board has aimed for a November referendum and to meet this year’s June 30 grant application deadline. By the end of Monday evening’s meeting, the referendum target appeared to stand but the board seemed inclined to push the grant application out a year.
That was the advice from Colliers Project Leaders and SLAM Collaborative, who said the two steps could be done in either order and that, so long as the referendum is held and passed this November, neither project timeline would be affected.
The timelines, predicated on a successful November referendum, indicate that a new school could be completed and open by autumn 2030. Renovation would take until mid to late 2032.
Holding off on the grant application could give the school board a bit more time to ask the Board of Selectmen to authorize a grant application and schedule a referendum. This could give school officials more time to sell a proposal to the public (they don’t put it that way) before a quiet period goes into effect and they are not allowed to do anything promotional.