Proposals for New Killam Elementary School and Reading Center for Active Living on the Ballot
Reading, MA — Reading voters will get their say on two proposed debt exclusion capital projects on Tuesday. Polls at the May 13 special election at the Hawkes Field House will be open from 7:00 am -8:00 pm. Both projects, the new Killam Elementary School and the Reading Center for Active Living, were endorsed by the Select Board and approved by Town Meeting.
The total cost for the Killam School project is anticipated at $130 million. If voters approve the project, the Massachusetts School Building Authority is expected to reimburse Reading for just over $44 million of those costs. If voters reject the project, Reading could lose the MSBA reimbursement.
Chief Financial Officer Sharon Angstrom has reported that if the funds were borrowed at the expected 3% rate for fifteen years, the cost to the Reading taxpayer would be $80 per $100,000 of assessed property value each year. She also noted that the debt for the high school, the Wood End Elementary School, and the library has been paid off and that the retirement of this debt amounts to a reduction of just over $42 per $100,000 of assessed value for taxpayers moving forward.
Superintendent of Schools Thomas Milaschewski and Killam School Building Committee chair Carla Nazzaro made the case for a new building at Town Meeting by citing the deficiencies of the current building, including lack of ADA compliance, classroom concerns, water infiltration, the lack of a fire suppression system, and more. Milaschewski also pointed out that the building has not had a significant renovation since it was built in 1969. Director of Facilities Joe Huggins shared that the cost to bring the current school building up to code could be $61 million.
Nazzaro praised the proposed design of the new school, referring to it as “A simple design, a clean design, with durable materials.”
The second project is the $27 million Reading Center for Active Living. This 28,000 square foot facility is intended to replace the current Pleasant Street Center, which has been noted for lacking basic facilities and program spaces.
Project plans for the new building include a gymnasium, improvements to Range Road up to the second parking lot entrance, triple-pane windows, a full-building propane generator, and a possible stone dust trail in the adjacent conservation area. Also included in the cost proposal is $4.7 million for contingencies.
“After nearly a decade of studying the changing community demographics and priorities, we are now at a stage where we can put it all together in the design of a new facility that will serve the community for years to come,” said Town Manager Matt Kraunelis at a recent Select Board meeting. “The building will provide improved resources for the growing number of age 60+ residents of our community, while also including resources and programs that serve all age groups.”
Former Select Board member Mark Docker shared in a presentation on the project at Town Meeting that the current space is “a smaller space that was not designed for this type of activity,” as it is a former fire station built in 1885. Huggins reported that the building was renovated for use as a senior center in 1993. Town Meeting member John O’Neil pointed out that even the architect of the 1993 project said that the Pleasant Street Center was unsuitable for use as a senior center.
Angstrom has indicated that the expected cost for the project is $27,000,000. This would result in an additional $29.78 per $100,000 assessed value per property for the fifteen-year borrowing period. The combined impact of the two projects, subtracting the amount no longer being paid due to retired debt, would be $66.80 per $100,000 of assessed value.
The Reading Post and RCTV will have complete coverage of the special election.
