Building authority gives OK to Wellesley, Mass., high school plans

The Massachusetts School Building Authority has approved plans for a new Wellesley High School, despite fears of a nationwide credit crunch. The approval sends the project to the next step in the process, a town meeting that will consider Wellesley's share of the cost. The price tag for the school stands at $135.6 million, including $110 million in construction costs. The School Building Authority voted to reimburse $44 million - or roughly 44 percent - of the capped construction costs.
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FROM JULY 2008: Wellesley officials have won tentative approval from the state of Massachusetts to build a new high school after scaling back their original $159 million proposal. If the project receives formal approval, Wellesley expects to receive state funding equal to at least 40 percent of the project's eligible costs, which town officials agreed to limit to $110 million. Timothy Cahill, state treasurer and chairman of the state's School Building Authority, praised Wellesley for scaling back its project.To read The Boston Globe article, click here. Earlier: At a time when construction costs for new schools are skyrocketing, officials in Wellesley, Mass., say the target price for their proposed new high school will drop by nearly $6 million. Meanwhile, the state is asking the town to consider changing its current plan, which calls for a new building, in favor of a combination of renovations to the existing facility and new construction. To read The Boston Globe article, click here.

Wellesley, Mass., officials will wait until they meet with state officials before further scaling back the town's $159 million plan for a new high school,. Ten days ago, state Treasurer Timothy Cahill criticized the Wellesley plan, as well as the $197 million plan for a new Newton North High School, as excessively expensive. Cahill serves as chairman of the Massachusetts School Building Authority, which administers state grants to local school projects. The proposed Wellesley high school is being designed to serve 1,600 students, at a construction cost of about $99,103 per student--the second highest per-student price tag among 19 recent high school building projects in the state.
To read The Boston Globe article, click here.

FROM MAY 2008: Town officials in Wellesley, Mass., have voted to support a plan for a new high school building. The recommendation must now go through review by the Massachusetts School Building Authority, which controls how much money the state contributes to the effort. Town officials looked at two design options: all-new construction, which will cost about $159 million and take under four years to complete.; and a renovation of the original 1938 section of the building with new additions, would would have cost about $175 million, with more than five years in construction.
Click here to read The Boston Globe article.