Triton invited into MSBA eligibility window; committee, timeline and funding steps outlined

The Triton Regional School Committee announced it has been welcomed into the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) eligibility process and outlined a multi‑step timeline and committee structure that must be completed before the district can advance to design work.

District officials said the MSBA placement starts a nine‑month Module 1 eligibility period beginning Feb. 3, during which the district must complete administrative requirements, certify enrollment and form a school building committee. "We were welcomed into the MSBA core pipeline," Superintendent Brian Forgett said, adding the district’s Module 1 period would run from Feb. 3 to Oct. 31 and could be expedited if tasks are completed sooner.

The committee described Module 1 as administrative and preparatory: it establishes enrollment figures the MSBA will use for reimbursement calculations, documents how the district will fund feasibility and schematic design work, and certifies a school building committee. Forgett and district staff said the next three modules — including schematic design and study work — typically take roughly two years and that, if towns approve a schematic design and pass the required debt exclusion votes, full construction would follow in subsequent years.

District staff proposed an 18‑member school building committee to organize community input and oversee the MSBA process. Planned roles listed for the committee include the superintendent, district facilities manager, director of finance and operations, middle and high school principals, two staff representatives (one middle school and one high school), two high‑school students, one middle‑school parent and town official representation from each member community. The district also is seeking a community member with construction, engineering or architecture experience to meet MSBA requirements; communications inviting candidates were described as already going out.

Finance director Brian Perry outlined the financial workflow: the district will spend feasibility and schematic design funds from an existing stabilization account, submit monthly invoices through the MSBA's ProPay system and receive reimbursement at the MSBA's established percentage for the module. "We pay the bill, and then the MSBA reimburses us within 30 days," Perry said. Officials said the district expects an initial reimbursement rate in the roughly 50% range for feasibility and schematic phases, subject to MSBA scoring and incentives that can raise the percentage.

School officials emphasized that any override or debt exclusion to fund construction must pass in each of the three member towns and noted a tentative best‑case schedule that could place a town vote in spring 2027 if the MSBA acceptance and subsequent work proceed on an aggressive timeline. District leaders also said funds already held in a stabilization account would allow the district to address emergency repairs during the study and design period without returning immediately to the towns for additional emergency appropriations.

Officials said the building committee will be an organizing body focused on outreach and committee work; large public input processes and televised meetings will be used to solicit community feedback across the three member towns. "This is going to be an open, transparent, always televised" process, Forgett said, and the school committee will review all major decisions.

The district staff asked select boards to nominate a town official or town administrator to the building committee and said it will bring recommended names back to the school committee for formal appointment.

District leaders said the MSBA process includes scoring incentives — for example, for energy efficiency or expanded in‑district special education space — that can increase the MSBA reimbursement rate beyond the base percentage determined in Module 1.

The building committee formation, enrollment certification and funding documentation must be completed in Module 1 before the MSBA schedules the district for a board vote to advance into Module 2, officials said. The committee will meet during the eligibility period to set roles and begin outreach while the administrative work is completed.