Article 6

Annual Town Meeting

April 29, 2007

Mr. Moderator,

Lea Anderson

47 Sedgemeadow Rd.

As chairman of the High School Building Committee I speak in favor of Article 6. The HSBC is working to keep the project to modernize and expand Wayland High School moving forward. The Massachusetts School Building Authority, the state funding agency, is nearing the end of a four year moratorium on funding new building projects. The HSBC is committed to being ready with an application as soon as the state asks Wayland to apply. To do this, the committee respectfully requests that $300,000 be allocated for the services of our design and project management professionals to

1. analyze the MSBA regulations relative to Wayland High School’s current conditions and future needs

2. help prepare the application documents required by the state for a reimbursable project

3. help the HSBC carry out the revised charge from the Wayland School Committee

This article limits the expenditure to $75,000 to get through the pre-study phase of the state process. Only when Wayland is selected to work with the state to develop a preliminary design, will the remaining $225,000 be allocated.

First some background:

The school was designed in the late fifties and built in 1960 as a modular, team-teaching, California-style campus. The math/English building was added in 1965 and the media center was added in 1972. In 1990, WHS got an upgrade with new roofs, some new heating and ventilation, some asbestos removal, some improvements to classrooms and interior cosmetic renovations. Six of the eight buildings are now 47 years old, one is 42 years old, and one is 35 years old. Even under the most optimistic scenario, a major renovation or new construction would not be completed before 2012. In that year, our current 3rd graders will be freshman.

Since 2002, three Wayland committees (including over 100 Wayland residents) and many outside professionals have studied WHS. All reached the same conclusion: the facility is deficient and requires a major overhaul. However in 2003 the state building assistance program was suspended and will not resume until this July at the earliest. Though the town voted funding for a preliminary design in 2003, you may remember that a vote for detailed design funds in January 2005 did not pass. The substantial work that was done in 2004 will not go to waste. It included a detailed study of existing conditions and educational programming, analysis of four design approaches, all useful for following the state process.

Since the Wayland study groups all concluded that WHS was in poor shape, there have been several outside agencies involved as well.

In the spring of 2005, we had our ten-year accreditation review by the NEASC. They cited Wayland High School for lack of health and safety code compliance, overcrowding, lack of technology infrastructure and outdated labs, undersized and overused classrooms, and lack of handicap accessibility. They said, “Severe limitations of the current facility seriously impact teaching and learning.” If these problems are not substantially addressed in the next 5 years we could be put on probation with the potential loss of accreditation.

In the spring of 2006 a large chunk of concrete fell off a roof overhang in a high traffic student area. It was the result of leaky roofs that are beyond their expected life. Repairs were made, but problems like this will continue until a long-term solution can be found. Other health and safety issues include air quality, asbestos, mold, lack of sprinklers, and poor lighting.

The Mass Division of Occupational Safety also visited in 2006 and cited us for health and safety issues – roof leaks, water damaged materials and air quality. These agencies, as well as the Department of Environmental Protection, Special Education officials and local building inspectors, will continue to watch us closely.

These problems must be addressed. The HSBC can’t “go away” – we’ll have to keep coming back to the town until a solution is found. We’re back now because we want to pursue state aid for a renovation or construction project.

State process

In the past, the state reimbursed Wayland for more than half the cost of its school renovations. We were just notified that we qualify for 61% reimbursement on the last Middle School renovation. Under the new system we anticipate getting at least 40%.

The state is rolling out a new process, and if we want that 40%, we will have to follow their rules. The state and local community will work together at every step of the new process. Wayland has submitted the Statement of Interest, which is the first step. We are waiting for state approval to proceed with the next phase – the application.

The state intends to work closely with towns through each step but no one knows how this will unfold. We do know that the state will determine the scope of a reimbursable project by determining the enrollment projection, the number of square feet per student and the cost per square foot. They will work with towns to study alternatives, but during the preliminary design or Feasibility Study, towns must choose one and obtain the State’s approval before proceeding.

The article before you asks for funding to move through this Feasibility phase. We have already done a lot of work in many areas. We think that our level of preparation will allow us to move quickly through the process but it will depend on the state.

One big change in the new process has to do with the local vote. In the past, towns could vote on multiple options or could vote design funds only, then construction later. Towns didn’t know their state aid percentage until after their design was approved. Now, towns will vote on only one approved project but will know their state aid ahead of time. Furthermore, the state will reimburse towns on a build as you go basis, rather than reimbursing towns after the project is completed. Therefore, towns will only need to borrow their share of the project cost.

We will start right away to analyze the new regulations, identify design alternatives, develop scenarios, update cost and other assumptions, and prepare the forms and deliverables for the state (as they become available). We have also been charged with considering a range of design approaches with some meaningful cost alternatives.

The state could give us the green light to prepare an application as soon as this summer, but more likely later in the year. We want to be ready to continue through their process without delay, so that we can submit our application as soon as they will accept it. There is no way to obtain state funding except to follow their process. There are many towns eager to move forward and if we are delayed because of funding issues in town, the state will move on to another community.

As it is today, with the most optimistic time line, the updated WHS would start to come on line in 2012. Today’s third graders will be freshmen then. If this article does not pass that will mean further delay. As time passes, the risk increases that we will face costly temporary repairs to keep the high school going.

Last time, we started with the optimal educational program and proposed a solution that met that program. We also studied a minimal “stop-gap” solution with code upgrades, designed to last 10 years. We plan to update both those scenarios. But what other scenarios should we consider? We’ve been charged with developing “meaningful cost alternatives”. We will have to make trade-offs.

It is probably not realistic to think we will discover a radically new approach, to accomplish the optimal educational program at a lower cost. This has been studied exhaustively by 3 committees over the past 5 years, with excellent professional help. There’s no silver bullet.

To reduce costs, we have to make compromises. For example, we could have fewer classrooms, or smaller ones. We could cut out performing arts or athletic space. We could have a smaller library or fewer computer labs. How will we evaluate these trade-offs? How will we prioritize these items and assign a cost to them? We have been and will continue reaching out to the community to engage your help in evaluating these choices. Will you please help us define a reimbursable plan for Wayland High School that is widely supported by the taxpayers of Wayland?

Please start by voting yes on Article 6.