North Country leaders outline multi‑year plan after PCB discovery at high school

North Country Union High School officials presented a preliminary plan to rebuild and modernize the campus following discovery of polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, in building materials and surrounding soil. Dwight Burnett, chair of the high school's building committee, and Chris Young, North Country principal, briefed the Newport City Council on August 18 about conceptual designs, testing results and next steps for a multi‑year project. The discussion matters because the school remains occupied while leaders plan construction and remediation, and because cleanup and construction decisions affect student safety, district budgets and possible future redistricting. Burnett said PCB testing showed contamination across multiple areas of the campus. "We found out that we've got plenty of them," he told the council, describing earlier contingency plans that included temporary tents for students. Burnett said the building committee has worked with an architect to produce preliminary concepts that try to preserve a campus feel while allowing phased construction with students on site. Young outlined the design assumptions and constraints. He said the designs currently under consideration would serve about 720 students, roughly matching the district’s present enrollment. "Our current student body is 720. This would fit 720," Young said. He told council members the existing 1960 building was originally designed for about 1,200 students but that contemporary classroom use requires larger, more flexible spaces. Officials described several practical constraints. The proposed primary building footprint would occupy the JV soccer field; removed buildings would be replaced with parking or fields. The project team has discussed using adjacent American Legion property to help with staging, parking or playing fields, but Young emphasized that was "not a done deal." He added that architects are exploring three‑story layouts to reduce the campus footprint. School leaders discussed a rough timeline and funding outlook. Young said the architect estimated the construction program would take about three years once drawings and contracts were in place, and that translating concepts into construction drawings could take roughly a year. He said state-level redistricting work and the presence or absence of state construction funds add uncertainty. "There’s legislation that says that there will be money for school construction, but there’s no actual money set aside," Young said, describing outreach to legislative advocates. On remediation, school staff said they have verbal assurances from state environmental officials that the department would treat North Country similarly to a recent Burlington cleanup effort. Young said that verbal commitment means the state ‘‘would be responsible for removing any contamination of materials, whether that’s actual PCB materials or the soil around the grounds.’’ He characterized the soil contamination data as preliminary and said further testing and state coordination remain necessary. Council members and residents asked about design capacity, parking and staging during construction. Young said the current concept preserves the three wing configuration—an arts/auditorium wing, an academic wing and a technical wing—while consolidating circulation and creating a larger central lobby and community‑oriented spaces. He also said the career/tech center and gym/auditorium could rise to three stories in the new plan. Residents raised consolidation concerns tied to state legislative proposals. Jennifer (identified in the record as a Port Road resident and a teacher at LR) urged sensitivity to neighboring districts if consolidation or redistricting requires combining student populations. Young and Burnett said conversations between supervisory union boards have already begun and that the design could be adjusted if consolidation were required. No formal council action or vote was taken. School representatives said they will return with updated plans, cost estimates and more detailed environmental testing as the design and state coordination continue. The school team asked the council and community to expect further public engagement, feasibility work and, if needed, a bond or other funding requests in the future.