Pawtucket councilors pressed city officials on Thursday over a projected cost overrun on the city's new high school, asking the administration to bring the city's fiscal advisers to a special council meeting to explain budgetary options and constraints.

Council members said the school construction project was tracking about 3.7% over on construction costs and about 3.7% overall on the project budget. Councilors said that percentage currently translates to roughly $12 million the city would need to address if costs hold. They noted the project sits inside previously approved bond authorizations and that any amount above that authorization would be paid entirely by the city without state reimbursement.

The request for a formal presentation by the city's fiscal advisers was introduced by Councilor Moreno and seconded from the floor; councilors agreed to pursue a focused, special meeting on the matter and asked the clerk and administration to coordinate dates in early November. Several councilors said the session should include the city's bond advisers and school construction managers and be strictly limited to explaining the fiscal position and options.

Councilors framed the discussion around two points: (1) the difference between an amount's dollar value and what gets cut or revised when a budget is capped, and (2) the mechanics of the state reimbursement formula. A council member noted that the approved bond cap for the project limits what the state will reimburse and that any spending beyond that cap would be 100% the city's responsibility. Another councilor warned that repeated change orders and schedule slips on prior school projects had produced reduced scope or additional costs and urged tighter oversight of project managers and contractors.

Members recounted the board's history on school facilities planning: a facilities master plan delivered in 2013; phased bond votes in 2015, 2019 and 2022; and ongoing yearly changes that have shifted priorities. Several councilors said the city must remain transparent with taxpayers and cautious about asking residents to absorb further costs, framing Pawtucket's status as a "distressed" community in the state aid sense'meaning the city already receives extra state aid because its tax capacity is limited.

Councilors and staff discussed logistics for a special meeting to host the fiscal advisers; dates in early to mid-November were proposed and the clerk was asked to work with administration to confirm availability.

Councilors emphasized that the purpose of the requested briefing is informational: to show the city's current exposure, explain the state reimbursement formula and bond limits, and identify what changes, if any, would be necessary to keep the project within the approved funding levels.

If the fiscal advisers later recommend changes that require council action, councilors said those items would return to the council with formal motions and, where needed, bond or budget amendments.