East Lyme school board forwards school proposal to selectmen
East Lyme — The Board of Education unanimously voted Monday to send the estimated $35.8 million elementary school renovation proposal to the Board of Selectmen.
The school board's vote represents the first approval step to move the proposal to a townwide referendum in mid-March.
Earlier this month, the Elementary Facilities Design Steering Committee presented its recommendation to renovate the schools with new air conditioning, security upgrades, Wi-Fi, handicap-accessible bathroom fixtures, and new paint, flooring, doors and light fixtures, among other renovations.
Alterations also include a new roof at Flanders Elementary School; reconfigured drop-off areas at Lillie B. Haynes Elementary School; and new windows and exterior masonry improvements at Niantic Center School.
A few alterations would be eligible for some state reimbursement, according to presentations held this month.
A package that includes cost estimates and renderings will be sent Tuesday to the selectmen, who will tentatively review the project on Feb. 1, according to a draft timeline.
If the Board of Selectmen approves the proposal, it will next move to the Board of Finance. If the finance board approves the bonding proposal, the selectmen can then set the date for the referendum.
Superintendent of Schools Jeffrey Newton has said school officials are proposing the three-school proposal, because revised projections show an upward trend in elementary school enrollment. He said providing alterations to the three aging schools is more fiscally prudent than rebuilding them or renovating them "as new."
On Monday, Board of Education member Jaime Barr Shelburn noted that she would like lights in the Niantic Center School parking lot to be added to the project. She called the lights a "very important safety issue."
Board of Education Chairman Tim Hagen said the package the board is forwarding to the selectmen represents the "broad scope of the project."
If the project is approved at referendum, the next phase will be for the architect and a team of engineers to go to the schools for a detailed review to take the proposal "to the next level of granularity as to what is needed," he said.
Hagen said the board will have to devise a review mechanism so any big surprises, found during the architect and engineers' review, would have to return to the board for approval.
Construction would begin in June 2018 and finish in fall 2019.
Meanwhile, an ad-hoc committee is studying redistricting the elementary schools. The committee will meet Wednesday afternoon to review a draft of a proposed redistricting plan, said Newton. The meeting will take place at 4:15 p.m. at the Board of Education Central Office.
The committee will tentatively present its plan to the Board of Education on Feb. 13, he said.
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