Saco schools report stable enrollment, bid timeline for new buildings and budget projections

SACO, Maine — Superintendent Jeremy, speaking to the Saco City Council and the school board Monday, said the district’s enrollment is down this fall but vocational program participation has increased, and officials are preparing to award construction contracts for two new school buildings.

Jeremy said the district’s pre-K through eighth-grade enrollment stands at 1,898 students, with 144 multilingual learners; high school enrollment is 891 students with about 25 multilingual learners. He said roughly 10–12 students remain under residency verification. He also said 115 Saco students are enrolled at the Biddeford Regional Center of Technology, the highest count he has seen.

The figures matter because the district uses October enrollment to finalize state and local budgeting. “What we do with these enrollment numbers is we finalize them over the next month,” Jeremy said, adding that the district will publish a new snapshot of enrollment on April 1.

Officials described several near-term facilities milestones. A bid opening for the two new school projects is scheduled for Oct. 22 at City Hall; staff expect to negotiate final contracts after the bid opening and said some preliminary site work could begin immediately. A ceremonial groundbreaking is scheduled for 11 a.m. on Dec. 4 at the construction site, with a target opening of the new schools in 2028.

Responding to an unexpected water leak at Fairfield School earlier this year, Jeremy said facilities and school staff chose a roughly $40,000 repair option instead of a $125,000 excavation alternative because much of the pipe was encased in four to six feet of original concrete. “We’re very lucky to have Don and his team working with us,” Jeremy said, referencing the city facilities staff who partnered with the district on the repair.

Finance and budget details were presented as preliminary and unaudited. Jeremy said the district had a draft fund balance that used prior-year reserves to cover health insurance and capital needs and that the district delivered roughly $1 million in MaineCare-related revenues in the most recent budget cycle, with a conservative estimate of $650,000 for the next year. The district reported undesignated capital funds of about $450,000, additional capital improvements of $150,000, an audio enhancement at Saco Middle School budgeted at about $190,000, and network cabling costs; overall unaudited projections put the combined fund balance north of $3.2 million going into FY 2026.

Officials said they are working to remove a remaining portable at Saco Middle School and to reconfigure spaces to expand middle-school hands-on programming in culinary, small engines/shop, STEM and digital media. Jeremy emphasized keeping programs and extracurriculars accessible regardless of family income and cited the popularity of vocational programs as a student response to workforce demand.

The superintendent also cited regional cost-of-living data from United Way’s ALICE (asset‑limited, income‑constrained, employed) research showing a four-person survival budget for York and Cumberland counties of about $107,008 and noting that Saco’s household share above the ALICE threshold is higher than the combined county average. He said housing affordability for staff remains a top challenge for recruitment and retention.

Facilities Director Roth described day-to-day operations and a first year of integrated city‑school facilities work that he said is lowering vendor costs and accelerating repairs. Roth highlighted new generator monitoring at Saco Middle School, more rapid in‑house work order turnover after recent hires and a new facilities building whose construction began this fall. He said combining city and school facilities teams has created efficiencies and faster contractor response.

Councilors asked about residency verification steps, homeschooling and private-school counts, and the district’s strategy for using one‑time revenues to close gaps while preserving long‑term capital capacity. Jeremy said staff will finalize residency and homeschool counts and provide follow-up details to council members.

Looking ahead, Jeremy and facilities staff said they will continue negotiating state energy incentives tied to geothermal work; the district had hoped initially for about $1 million in credits but said that figure could change as state rebates and allocations are finalized.

If the council or school committee asks for additional detail, staff plan to return with updated audited fund‑balance numbers and a clearer breakdown of expected state energy credits at the Oct. 20 city meeting.