The Community School District (CSD) Board of Trustees voted Aug. 22 to approve referendum questions to fund the $89 million Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor school renovation project. The questions will split the issue into two parts around renovating the middle-elementary school and building a new high school.  

The trustees voted 5-0 on draft language, which will be finalized by attorneys and discussed at a joint CSD Board of Trustees and School Board meeting Aug. 28 to call and sign the warrants.

Alternative Organizational Structure (AOS) 98 Superintendent Robert Kahler said the trustees split the question because they recognize that the full $89 million could be a burden.  

“It’s not that the high school repairs are any less important than the middle-elementary (school),” he said. “It’s all necessary, but this is the trustees’ method of finding a way forward …" 

The first referendum question will ask voters if they approve $28.8 million for renovations of the elementary school, and the construction of a middle school wing and maintenance building. The second question is about additional funds to construct a new high school, costing around $60 million. 

The first question also includes the cost of site work such as surveying and site preparation for both the middle-elementary project and new high school construction. According to Kahler, it is more cost effective to combine the work while the equipment is on site. However, if the second question fails, he said the site work for the high school would not be needed.  

The board recommended voting yes on question one but did not reach a consensus on recommending the full combined project vote.  

By splitting the issue, residents can weigh in on moving forward with the needed work without committing to the cost of the whole project, Kahler said. He said if the second question fails and the first one passes, the district could focus its operational budget on making repairs to keep the high school operational while the full renovation is being done for the middle-elementary school.  

"It’s a way for us to also get a very clear sense of how the community feels,” he said. “We know how a dozen people feel very clearly, but we don't know how the community feels."   

This approach may also buy time, according to officials. School administrators could progress on maintenance while continuing to explore options to fund a new high school or inform the public. Trustee Chair Steve Lorrain said he also wants to be able to give the new long-term planning committee, which is investigating regional options, more time.   

“We could go through all this and if they do succeed, and there is a call for it, then here we are,” he said. "It’s going to give us a comfortable time to raise funds and get this out to the public the way that they need to hear it." 

However, further delays come at a cost. Staff, trustees and the public have said both schools need work and have called ongoing maintenance temporary “Band-Aids.” According to trustees, more deferred maintenance could impact school safety and repair costs and may cause insurance issues or even require a school shutdown. 

In addition, Lavallee Brensinger architects estimate that for each year the building and renovation project is delayed, costs would increase by about 7% due to inflation, price of materials and other building factors. According to materials Kahler provided, that escalates costs by $6 million a year for the whole project, split between $2 million for the middle-elementary portion and $4 million for the new high school.   

Members of the CSD boards and a newly formed communications committee are aiming to get more information out to the public before the Nov. 7 referendum. They are planning a series of informational materials and events including a public forum for Boothbay Harbor on Oct. 25 and Boothbay on Oct. 26.   

"When we take this to the public, we'll just lay it all out and let them know,” Lorrain said. "I’ve said it time and time again, the can’s been kicked down the road so far that we’re running out of can and running out of road. It’s kept taxes low, but deferred maintenance is deferred maintenance, and this is exactly where it (goes)."