Walpole School Building Committee approves $3.58 million package for sidewalks, parking and field upgrades

The Walpole School Building Committee voted Feb. 11 to proceed with a combined sidewalks, roadway and athletic-field package for the middle school project totaling $3,581,000, approving work that includes roadway safety improvements, parking along East Street and a suite of field upgrades.

The package funds two related components: $1,450,000 for paving, granite curbing, sidewalks and roadway safety improvements managed by the town Department of Public Works (DPW), and $2,131,000 for field work that includes a $2,022,000 field construction estimate plus a $34,000 construction-administration allowance, according to a memo circulated to the committee.

The vote followed more than an hour of discussion in which members and town and school representatives debated whether to spend leftover borrowing for “complete” neighborhood and athletic improvements or to conserve surplus funds for future capital needs. Ben, a Select Board representative, argued the community would benefit from finishing related infrastructure now and described the approach as a stakeholder-driven, “complete projects” strategy. Jack, a committee member, urged tabling the item so the full School Committee could vote; Nancy, a School Committee member present, said she opposed press boxes and questioned the scale of the cost.

Joel, a construction representative, and Kate, project staff, summarized the scope and what remains out of contract. Items included in Fontaine’s base bid for the field work are chain‑link fencing along East Street, removable bollards at the main field entrance, dugouts with benches and integrated storage, two enclosed on‑deck circles, new 20‑foot backstops with hoods for varsity softball and JV baseball, portable bleachers (49 seats for each of two locations), a new varsity batting cage for the softball field and extensions of sports netting to protect East Street. Conduits for power and fiber to press box locations were included; press boxes themselves were placed in a bid alternate.

Several items were intentionally removed from the base contract during value‑engineering: picnic tables and stabilized stone‑dust surfacing under them, plantings and mulch, trash receptacles, bike racks, a lower asphalt walkway (the project retains a running/walking loop), portable audio systems and press boxes — the latter moved to a bid alternate priced at $527,000 for two 8-by-12 prefabricated units, per committee discussion.

School staff described regular middle-school use of the fields. Harry, a school staff member, said the grounds are used daily for physical education, recess and planned intramural and wellness programming and said the fields support about 900 students. Bridget, a school administrator, said the project is intended to support expanded middle-school athletic and wellness programming.

Committee members also discussed financing. Committee members confirmed the Select Board recently authorized additional borrowing of $7 million related to the middle-school project. Town staff explained that any surplus remaining when the middle-school project closes could be reallocated by the town (typically via a future town meeting) to other capital projects; that process can take multiple years. The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) reimbursement process was also discussed; the project is currently reimbursed through the MSBA at 91.74% of the estimated grant and will have a final 5% holdback until the MSBA closeout milestone.

After discussion the committee moved to approve “the 3 some odd million as set forth in the proposal letter.” The motion was seconded and the committee voted on the motion; the meeting record indicates there were members opposed. The committee then moved to subsequent agenda items.

The committee also voted to approve the January vendor invoice package for $692,381.36, which includes a Fontaine requisition of $389,692 and shows Fontaine at about 98% completion of its contract, and approved meeting minutes and routine items earlier in the session.

What changed and what remains: press boxes and some amenities were shifted out of the base contract and into a bid alternate or removed to lower near‑term cost. Items left out of contract will require separate funding or DPW provision if they are to be added later. Construction activity associated with the approved scope is scheduled to begin as early as March, with the contractor’s contract running into April and field work aimed for completion by July, so committee members emphasized the need for timely decisions if the work is to proceed in the upcoming growing season.

The committee scheduled its next meeting for March 18, with a return to a hybrid meeting format under consideration.