I think it’s time that we stop validating the “phased” approach to the new high school as a legitimate option.

The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) has stringent requirements for the Educational Plan that a new school building must meet. The requirements can be found here, and the Lexington Educational plan can be found here. 

BLOOM meets these objectives, and students will move into the new building for the 2029-30 school year, assuming that the town votes to support a debt exclusion to pay for it. 

Phase I of the “Magic Box” phased approach does NOT meet these objectives. Rather, it abandons most of the Educational Plan. 

The Magic Box does NOT address the numerous deficiencies in the existing buildings: 

  • the HVAC is not working 
  • the roof is failing 
  • the buildings are loud 
  • buildings, including core spaces, are overcrowded (~30% over designed capacity) 
  • safety and security features are lacking 
  • buildings are not ADA compliant and are incredibly challenging for our students with disabilities

Please read the Lexington Educational plan to learn more.

The Magic Box will almost certainly cost more: Higher construction costs for Phase II whenever that happens, more architect and project management fees due to two separate projects, and no state funding as it does not meet educational objectives. 

The Magic Box will take longer. It is possible, if the town chose to say “no thank you” to state funds and build the Magic Box anyway, that the Phase I Box could be complete in around the same timeframe as BLOOM. BUT…

There is no clear timeline for when Magic Box Phase II would happen, which is when we could actually consider the project complete. Phase II is when the deficiencies in the existing buildings would potentially be addressed. Magic Box proponents suggest that this will happen when there is a clear understanding of enrollment (per their criteria), so completion not for at least 8-10 more years. 

This delay will add significant repair and maintenance costs for the existing buildings for the next decade, including the possibility of emergency replacement. 

Scrutiny of the BLOOM proposal is not a bad thing, and the School Building Committee has made multiple significant changes to the project plans based on community feedback. It’s necessary and appropriate for any large capital project. 

I do not understand, however, why the proponents of the Magic Box plan are not applying any scrutiny to their own proposal. 

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