Lincoln School Committee Unanimously Backs Major Renovation Articles for Town Meeting

LINCOLN -- February 5, 2015, Lincoln School Committee unanimously endorses comprehensive school renovation articles ahead of spring Town Meeting. The committee voted Thursday to back Articles 10 and 11 on the Town Meeting warrant, supporting a $750,000 property tax assessment for a feasibility study and potential pursuit of Massachusetts School Building Authority funding. Architect Jason Boone of Doran Whittier Architects presented a 106-page study identifying 143 facility items and 28 educational enhancements, with the town's share of any significant project estimated between $29 million and $40 million; comprehensive options with all improvements range from $54 million to $66 million. School Building Advisory Committee co-chair Doug Adams and member Maggie Pietropalo credited more than 108 hours of volunteer meeting time and five community forums with shaping the study's layered menu of options. The committee also approved a ballot question authorizing the assessment and approved warrants of $776,152.60, while Business and Finance Administrator Buck Creel flagged a potential 6 percent cut to the district's $472,661 METCO grant under the governor's 9C budget reductions.