High School Building Committee Narrows Options

And then there were two. Three of the five options on the table for a new High School were eliminated last night near the end of a three-hour Burlington High School Building Committee Meeting.

Chris Blessen of Tappé architects spent a great deal of time at the meeting going through the pros and cons of each of the five options, as well as the details about how each version of the project would be phased and what the impacts of construction would be.

At issue were three new construction options, two of which would build a new school where Varsity Field currently stands and one that would locate a new school in the current student parking lot, along with two addition-renovation options that would eliminate most of the middle of the current building, construct a full new classroom wing, and renovate the rest of the school.

Committee member Doug Davison clarified that, while the addition-renovation option is so named, the classroom wing for students would be brand new and the areas of the school that are kept would be renovated. Terry Hartford of Owner's Project Manager Dore & Whittier likened the option to building an entirely new home onto the old home's sunroom.

Members of the public were invited to participate and, unsurprisingly with a project of this scope, many people had many different opinions and concerns about the project. Comments ranged from one resident wishing the town could wait a few years for this project in light of the two other building projects (the police station and Fox Hill School) that are already in process, to another who urged the Committee to look at commercial space for the non-high-school spaces in the current building, such as Burlington Cable Access TV (BCAT), the Burlington Early Childhood Center (BECC), the Burlington Public Schools Central Office, and more. The Committee previously decided to wrap these functions into whatever solution is eventually chosen, a decision which tacks on around $40 million to the price tag. Residents were also worried about parking during several years of construction if a new school is built on the student parking lot and the impact of the community of using the new Marshall Simonds Fields, which will be completed this fall, as Varsity Field if the decision is made to build a new school where Varsity Field currently stands.

The property is restrictive in many ways, with bordering wetlands decreasing the available area for construction. Water problems and the impacts of excavation are other concerns voiced by residents at the meeting.

After all options were presented and many residents and committee members voiced their thoughts, School Committee and Building Committee member, Melissa Massardo, moved not to consider moving Varsity Field to where the High School currently sits. That would mean the only way a new school could be built on the current varsity field is if a study shows that Varsity Field could be relocated to where the practice field currently is, and that study is not yet complete. In this option, the track would not fit around the new Varsity Field and would still need to be placed in the space between the additional services wing and the gyms & auditorium.

The Committee passed Massardo's motion easily and also eliminated the option of building on the student parking lot along with one of the addition-renovation options. The two options remaining are:

• New Construction 5 - The school would be built on Varsity Field, the track would be relocated to where the classroom spaces currently are, and the field would be relocated to where the practice field is in the wetlands.
• Addition-Renovation 8 - The center classroom area of the school would be demolished and a new classroom wing would be built, connected to the remaining part of the building.

Read more about these options on the Burlington High School Building Project website.

There will be another community forum on March 27, 2025, at 6:30 PM in the BHS auditorium, where the committee and the professionals helping the committee through the process will present the progress of this project to the community.