Got Questions About the Fox Hill Building Project? We Want to Help.

Questions about the Fox Hill project? Sign up for our first-ever Community Conversation.

On September 23,2024, Burlington's legislative body will take up the question of funding a new elementary school building for Burlington. Fox Hill has been a topic of conversation in the community since at least 2019, when the School Committee requested community input regarding a possible configuration of a new elementary school on the Fox Hill site and submitted a Statement of Interest to the Massachusetts School Building Authority to renovate or rebuild Fox Hill.

The school was accepted into the program, and for the last three years the School Building Committee has been working alongside Owner's Project Manager, Dore & Whittier, and architect/designer DiNisco Designs to create the solution that they believe will best address the community's needs now and in the future. Several community members have been involved in the process. However, as the day approaches when Town Meeting will be voting on whether or not to approve funding for the $100-million project (1/3 of which will be paid for by state subsidies and energy incentives), residents and Town Meeting members still have questions and concerns about the project, its tax impacts, and its place in the overall landscape of the new buildings needed across town.

Burlington Buzz has been watching the School Building Committee meetings and Community Forums for you for over two years now, and we have summarized the process in meetings summaries and the School Buildings Across Burlington In-Depth explainer. But we know many residents still have questions and Town Meeting Members will be able to best represent their constituents by hearing directly from them what their questions and concerns are.

That is why we are in the early stages of planning a Community Conversations event on Sunday, September 22, 2024, at 3:00 PM on the Town Common, during which we will host conversations in precinct groups so community members can learn more about the project and express their support and/or concerns ahead of Town Meeting. This is the first time we've ever attempted a community event like this, and we need your help. In order to make it work, we need Town Meeting members, School Building Committee members, and community members from each precinct to come join us—and we need one impartial moderator per precinct (7 total). Moderators will be provided with a conversation template so they can keep the discussion on track.

Oh! And there will be ice cream.

Will you join us for this first-of-its-kind discussion? Express your interest via this short form. Note that these plans are tentative and subject to change. We will contact registrants via email with details ahead of the event. We hope to see you there!