Somerville Board launches outreach ahead of March 11 school referendum

The Somerville Board of Education presented a community outreach plan Thursday to explain a two-question bond referendum that will appear on the March 11 ballot and encouraged residents to use public forums and the district website to learn more.

Board and district officials said the outreach will include an informational video, in-person and virtual public forums, mailed postcards, multilingual print materials, social media, and a dedicated page on somervilleschools.org so voters can see project lists, FAQs and financial information.

District leaders said the ballot contains two distinct questions. The first question would fund widespread facility improvements across the district — including updated science labs, roof and HVAC work, security vestibules and other building repairs — while the second question would fund more extensive high-school upgrades such as a new athletic building with a gym, locker rooms, weight room and athletic training space. Officials said state aid tied to the referendum is estimated at $7,300,000 and that only districts with a voter-approved referendum can access that aid.

Superintendent (name not specified) told the board the district has organized a “multi-platform” campaign to help voters understand the two questions, the projects included, and the tax implications. He said the district will host an in-person forum and building tour focused on key Question 1 facilities and a March 4 virtual forum via Zoom for questions from voters. The district also plans postcards to every Somerville household, press releases, social media posts and multilingual printed materials.

District materials, the superintendent said, explain that state aid and waning debt service on previous referenda make the timing advantageous: approval of Question 1 alone would be presented by the district as producing a net tax decrease compared with current debt service levels, while approval of both questions would increase local tax costs. The superintendent emphasized the district’s intent to provide clear, factual cost estimates and to post questions and answers on the referendum web page.

Officials reminded voters that the March 11 polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Vandiver Elementary School and Somerville High School and urged residents to consult somervilleschools.org for full project lists, financial strategy and voting information.

The board did not take a referendum vote at the meeting; the presentation was an informational and outreach step ahead of the March 11 election.