Norwich council authorizes application for state grant to build new Teachers Memorial Middle School
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Summary
The Norwich City Council voted 6-0 to amend its earlier authorization and permit the Norwich Board of Education to apply for a Department of Administrative Services school construction grant to build a new middle school on the Teachers Memorial site, shifting the project from a renovation to new construction.
The Norwich City Council on Oct. 6 voted 6-0 to authorize the Norwich Board of Education to apply for a state school construction grant to build a new Teachers Memorial Middle School on the existing site.
The resolution amends an April 21, 2025 authorization that had allowed either a renovation “to as new” of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School or construction of a new school. The council, citing a recommendation from the School Building Committee, removed the renovation option and directed that the grant application seek funding for new construction. Mayor Peter Nystrom, Alderman Stacy Gould and Alderman Mark Bettencourt were listed as sponsors of the amended resolution.
Why it matters: The change aligns the council’s authorization with the building committee’s recommendation and is required before the state Department of Administrative Services (DAS) will accept a grant application. The council noted timing constraints tied to the DAS review and the grant-application schedule.
In presenting the change, Alderman Mark Bettencourt, chair of the building committee, said the committee had determined “it would be new construction” and that the amendment was largely a deletion of language to reflect that decision. Bettencourt added the timing was “imperative” to meet application deadlines and clarified that the matter concerns the grant application rather than electrical equipment or other procurement issues raised earlier: “It has nothing to do with the switch gear or anything like that, really acquisition. It’s strictly regarding the grant application.”
The resolution references that voters approved a $385,000,000 school construction bond ordinance (Ordinance 18-20) by referendum on Nov. 8, 2022; one of the projects authorized by that ordinance is the Teachers Memorial project. The council’s amended resolution directs the Norwich Board of Education “to apply to the commissioner of administrative services and to accept or reject a grant to be used for the construction of [a] new middle school on the site of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School.”
The council approved the amendment and final resolution by roll call, each vote recorded as “yes” and the adoption noted as 6-0. The next steps described in the meeting record are for the Board of Education to submit the DAS grant application and for DAS to complete its review of the application and any required approvals.
No votes on project contracting, design, or expenditure beyond the authorization to apply for and accept a DAS grant were taken at the Oct. 6 meeting.
