ORANGE — Whether it’s a new school, an add-on or renovation, residents are clear they want a true “community school” in town.
Such a school would not only serve the educational needs of the students, but also would feel worth it to the average taxpayer, possibly including a public library, increasing property values and having spaces where children can learn valuable skills like cooking and gardening to bring with them when they finish elementary school.
Tuesday night was the first public input session on the Dexter Park Innovation School project. Dexter Park currently is one of only nine schools in the state with the lowest possible grade from the Massachusetts School Building Authority, indicating the need to replace or renovate the school.
Hill International is managing the project on behalf of the town, and Raymond Design Associates is the chosen architect. Together, these two companies are performing a “feasibility study” that will determine the best solution to the issues at Dexter Park, which has structural problems like leaks and has become overcrowded since the closing of the Butterfield School in 2015. By May, Hill International and RDA will have three “best options” to bring before the MSBA, which Hill International’s Martin Goulet estimates will fund about 80 percent of the project.
According to Dan Bradford, RDA project architect, it’s already determined that the three options will include at least one plan for an entirely new school and at least one renovation plan, but the company is looking to the public for specific suggestions.
“There are schools that are true community schools that provide all kinds of services, and I think we can do that, even if it may be a challenge,” said resident Mike Magee, who would like to see the school include a public library and playing fields, a sentiment echoed by several others at the meeting.
“I’m not going to vote for a new library and new school,” Magee said. “It needs to be extremely energy efficient, extremely.”
Most of all, Magee said, he would like to see one modern school for students in kindergarten through sixth grade to replace Fisher Hill Elementary School and Dexter Park, which split students according to grade.
“Get rid of these three obsolete schools,” Magee said, referring also to the closed Butterfield School, which the architects are evaluating as a potential school site.
Dexter Park Principal Christopher Dodge attended the meeting, and said he would like to see large areas in a school that allow “collaboration,” both between teachers and between students, as well as areas that provide confidentiality for service providers visiting the school.
“Collaboration is really important thing for everything we do,” Dodge said, adding he would like “places where we can meet and plan and meet with service providers.”
Many wanted to see access to technology as a theme in whatever ends up being built, as well as places that teach children life skills like cooking and gardening.
“The schools that are being built are so different from what was being built even 10 or 15 years ago,” said Goulet, assuring the crowd that access to technology and security will be priorities.
“I want to see a building that’s still going to be useful in the next 50 years,” said Diane Salcedo, a member of the Elementary School Committee. “We might not want to think of education going through fads but it really does.”
Other ideas came from School Committee Chairwoman Stephanie Conrod, who suggested a nonflat roof to prevent problems with drainage currently experienced at the flat-roofed Dexter Park, and from Selectboard Vice Chairwoman Jane Peirce, who wanted to see rooms included for music and arts.
Voters approved last January funds for a “feasibility study” to determine the best option for going forward, which led to the hiring of Hill International and RDA. Only $179,000 of the study comes from the town, the rest of the $875,000 study is coming from state. According to Bradford, after meeting with the MSBA this summer, the architects and project manager, as well as the Orange School Building Subcommittee will choose an option, presenting that to the MSBA in September. Finally, a schematic design will be produced for January of 2020 to bring before MSBA. It is unclear how much the project will cost, because that depends if there is a complete build or a renovation. Residents should expect to vote on the project at the 2020 Annual Town Meeting.
According to Bradford, all current school sites are being analyzed, as well as that of the closed Butterfield School, and other sites in town will also be studied to determine if they are feasible for a new school.
“The least apparent option sometimes does surface,” Bradford said. “What we need to do at this point, and what we have done since we started, is make an assessment about every use of the current buildings as they’re set up… But we’re not limiting it to the real estate attached to the current buildings.”
There will be at least two or three more public input sessions regarding the design and building process. Another public meeting will be held on March 28, when the architects will discuss an educational plan they will develop with consultants and school officials.
Reach David McLellan at dmclellan@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 268.