Council hears update on school bond; RIDE reimbursement and design options remain under consideration

Dr. Kim Page, the council's representative on the school building advisory committee, briefed the Town Council on the school bond projects and said architects and the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) are reviewing options to maximize state reimbursement.

"They presented us with three different scenarios," Dr. Page said. The options include: (1) adding pre-kindergarten classrooms at Wickford Middle School to increase utilization and potentially improve reimbursement; (2) moving fifth grade into middle schools to change enrollment patterns and relieve elementary overcrowding; and (3) building a three-floor middle school for grades 6-8 with one floor per grade. Dr. Page said the committee did not make a decision and is working with the district and RIDE to align designs with state guidelines for maximum reimbursement.

Councilors asked follow-up questions about capacity, the implications of moving fifth grade (for example, interactions between fifth and eighth graders and bus arrangements), and the relative cost of adding a third floor. Dr. Page said the architects already had preliminary drawings for the pre-K option and that the owner's representative and RIDE continue to advise the committee.

The committee will reconvene and provide another update at the council after the advisory group narrows options; a next meeting date was mentioned as April 24. Staff and Dr. Page emphasized that any expenditures from the bond will require separate public council approval and that the project team is focused on arranging a stage-2 application to RIDE that preserves maximum reimbursement.