Town Notes
Published on May 2nd, 2001
STONEHAM, MA -
Middle School Feasibility
The Middle School Feasibility Committee recommended, at an April 30 meeting, rebuilding the Middle School on the site of the High School tennis courts.
The Montvale Avenue based architectural firm of Mount Vernon projected a total price tag — based on current construction costs for a four story, 750 student building — of $30 million.
The announcement was the culmination of more than three months of meetings of the Middle School Feasibility Committee, an advisory body formed by the School Committee at the request of the Selectmen.
At the April 30 meeting, all the boards got together to discuss options. Mount Vernon recommended rebuilding, rather than renovation.
“Renovation would be almost as costly and leave us with a less efficient building,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Joseph Connelly.
A preliminary report will be read at the May 7, 2001, Town Meeting. A full report will be read at the October 2001 meeting. Then the School Department will ask for money for the schematic design phase at the May 2002 Town Meeting, followed by a request for final design and construction funds at the October 2002 or May 2003 meeting. These dates are optimistic estimates; nothing is set in stone.
The Feasibility Committee looked at several spots besides the High School courts, including areas near Stone Zoo, Recreation Park and Pomeworth Park, before narrowing the field to the Middle School site or the High School campus.
“We decided on the High School campus because it allows us to maximize availability of programs, faculty and staff,” Connelly said.
He added that the Middle School site “is cramped with traffic flow problems.”
And although the Middle School property has always tested free of contamination and remediation of the nearby railroad right of way is scheduled for July, Connelly acknowledged that the nagging concerns in some people’s minds about the site are another negative of the Middle School site.
The Middle School will be torn down and replaced by a recreational area, maybe varsity tennis courts.
Selectmen notes
The Town Administrator Screening Committee recommended five applicants to Selectmen on May 1, but Selectmen asked the Committee to take a second look at ten names.
Thirty six people applied for the job. The Selectmen have numbers, not names. Names will be released to the public when Selectmen interview semi-finalists. Screening Committee Chairwoman Janice Houghton said that two of the numbers listed by Selectmen correspond to people who have already taken other jobs.
The Screening Committee will interview the rest of the people listed by Selectmen and come back to the May 15 meeting. At this time Selectmen will agree to look at five to 10 semi-finalists. Then public interviews will be held. Then two or three finalists will be chosen and re-interviewed before the Board votes to hire the new Town Administrator.
Beautification
The Finance Board decided to recommend favorable action on Article 40 of the May 7 Town Meeting, which asks citizens to appropriate $20,000 of town funds for “beautification.”
The previous figure was $22,885, earmarked to pay for supplies to keep Stoneham looking good, such as paint for light poles and hoses to water road islands. Board members worried about funding materials without considering who would do the work. But after talking with Public Works and Whip Hill caretakers the Finance Board was convinced that the job would get done. A final debate over the numbers cut the figure to an even $20,000 before unanimous approval.
Safety antenna
The Board of Appeals granted a variance to allow an antenna on top of a Stonehill Towers apartment building to allow for two-way communication between Stoneham public safety officers.
At the April 26 Board of Appeals meeting, Police Chief Eugene Passaro and Fire Chief Lawrence Lamey both said that the antenna was important to make sure that police officers and firefighters could receive emergency calls in the field.
The Stonehill Towers apartment buildings are on Stonehill Drive off Main Street near the North Street intersection.
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