The public health emergency we face brings unexpected changes to our lives. We must look to each other to strengthen community bonds, family by family and business by business. As Chair of the Orange School Building Committee, I believe the bonds we form for the greater good include continuing our work in coordination with the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) to find a suitable alternative to Dexter Park School. This work remains vital to the health of Orange.
Our decisions are driven by a commitment to the educational plan developed by our teachers, students, staff, administration and design professionals. Our guiding principle is finding the most cost-effective approach that makes the best use of existing resources. After extensive studies, the committee voted to proceed with an expansion and rehab of Fisher Hill School. We came to this vote after looking at options that included a new building on the Mahar campus or renovation and expansion of Butterfield school. Keep in mind that in order to qualify for MSBA funding, the proposed project must meet the needs of the elementary school population for the next 30 to 50 years. MSBA will not reimburse for some other temporary solution, and the cost of trying to make do with the substandard buildings we have exceeds the cost of our share of this school project. MSBA is paying 75 percent of the construction costs of the Fisher Hill project
Butterfield School is a beloved presence in our community, but the existing campus is not large enough for our student body. The MSBA will not fund any project that does not meet its standards for security, classroom capacity, or recreational/ playground space. In order to meet the MSBA space requirements, we would need to displace our neighbors through the undesirable “taking” of private property; this requirement would be a financial burden resting solely on the town. MSBA would not cover any property acquisition and demolition costs. The interior of the building (actually smaller than Dexter Park) does not comply with modern standards so would have to be gutted, and the expansion would also change the exterior — thereby losing so much of what has made Butterfield endearing to so many.
The Fisher Hill expansion ends up being the best fiscal option we have. We will have new space for all our grades, pre-K-6, as well as adequate accommodations for the nurse, occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy, and other desperately needed support services. By expanding Fisher Hill, most of the costs of needed upgrades to the existing roof, windows, and HVAC will be included in the MSBA contribution to new construction costs. Approximately 75 percent of the construction costs will be reimbursed.
Renovating the existing 70-year-old Dexter Park building is not a realistic option.
It is functionally obsolete and undersized. MSBA will not support its renovation; its insufficient space doesn’t meet current standards. Therefore, its non-reimbursable renovation — plus the town being responsible for the full cost of Fisher Hill’s needed infrastructure improvements — would far exceed the town’s share of the proposed expansion and improvements at Fisher Hill.
The building inspector has serious concerns about structural integrity of the building. A structural engineer will evaluate the deteriorating floor structure at Dexter to determine what will be required to make the structurally compromised building serviceable until the new school is complete in 2023. There is nowhere else to send the students.
We believe that the Fisher Hill plan achieves the goal of finding Orange the most cost-effective way of providing the physical space that will meet our pre-K-6 school needs well into the future. A space that supports our educational plan and brings students, teachers, staff, and administration together to share ideas and inspiration.
We are all struggling to cope with burdens placed on us fighting the spread of COVID-19. It’s a difficult time to discuss financing a new school. We must keep in mind that a failure to proceed with this project doesn’t shield us from our obligations to the students of Orange and its taxpayers. If we reject this plan, things will become more expensive, and obtaining MSBA funding more difficult.
How can this project be “too expensive” if the consequence of not proceeding is to have no safe space for our Grades 3-6 children? As we strive to support each other in the weeks ahead, let us to keep in mind that we must support this project for an ever-improving future for Orange and its children.
Bruce Scherer is the chair of the Orange School Building Committee.