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Scituate approves $3.5M bond for school capital; parents urge council for $250,000 to restore classrooms
Summary
Council approved a $3.5 million capital bond that included a unit‑priced radio signal (BDA) system after testing showed weak indoor radio coverage. Separately, parents and the school committee asked the council for roughly $250,000 to restore two positions; the council debated authority and did not appropriate funds at the meeting.
The Scituate Town Council voted to approve a $3.5 million bond resolution for school capital projects, including a previously budgeted fire alarm upgrade and a unit‑priced BDA (bi‑directional amplifier) radio system that was added after testing showed insufficient police/fire radio coverage in parts of the building.
Kyle Robinson, an architect on the project, said the bidder’s original estimate included unit pricing for BDA testing and the contract allowed activation of that unit price after site testing. "The building failed," Robinson said after testing identified areas of weak radio signal where a BDA would be required to meet the fire marshal’s expectations. Councilors and school officials debated procurement and whether the test should have been performed earlier in the design process. Councilors emphasized safety and noted the low bid with the unit price still came in substantially below an alternate full bid.
In a separate and extended public hearing, the school committee asked the council to consider a supplemental appropriation of roughly $250,000 to restore two positions and rebuild class sizes at Hope School. Dozens of parents, educators and residents spoke. Parents described combining large numbers of kindergarten students (some with multiple IEPs) into single classrooms and urged the council and school committee to find funds to maintain smaller class sizes and supports for Title I students. School committee members said they were invited to submit a request after an earlier council statement and that they would use any funds provided to restore the specific positions named in their letter.
Councilors debated legal authority and precedent for supplementing the school budget mid‑cycle, with some members saying the school committee is an independently elected body that controls day‑to‑day allocations while others signaled sympathy for the parents’ concerns. No supplemental appropriation was adopted at the meeting; councilors encouraged the school committee and superintendent to continue dialogue and to pursue budget options and possible reallocations.
What happens next: The school capital bond proceeds will be available for the approved projects and the town will activate the unit price for the BDA system where required by the fire marshal. The school committee and council will continue conversations about classroom funding and priorities; parents indicated they will press the issue at future meetings.
