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Narragansett officials outline $1M O'Brien Wing upgrade estimate and transportation needs
Summary
School leaders said the O'Brien Wing is now used for storage and estimated about $1 million would be required to bring seven classrooms there up to code; they also described the district's transportation setup—two daily runs, generally non‑air‑conditioned buses, and the planned purchase of a wheelchair‑equipped mini bus.
Council members asked about underused school space and transportation, and district leaders provided estimates and operational details.
On the elementary school’s O'Brien Wing, Dr. Cummings said the space is currently used for storage and emergency staging; when asked about reuse, she said her maintenance director estimated roughly $1 million would be required to bring the wing up to code and that the space could accommodate seven classrooms if renovated. "We require about, when our maintenance director and I last spoke... about a million dollars, to bring it up to code," she said. The superintendent added the district has considered CTE uses or an alternative‑school configuration but has not needed those changes and cited safety and program suitability concerns (for example, welding near young students).
On transportation, council members noted empty seats on buses; the superintendent said the district’s in‑house transportation is more cost‑effective than outsourcing for this community and that the system uses two daily runs (a combined high‑school/middle run and an elementary run) to limit ride time to about an hour. The district recently replaced several buses and said it will need to acquire one more mini bus equipped for wheelchair access soon. Officials also said traditional yellow buses are not air‑conditioned and the district opens windows on warmer days; the smaller vans used for special runs may have different features.
Why this matters: facility upgrades and transportation purchases require capital planning and factor into the FY26 budget and the district’s forthcoming five‑year facilities review. The school and town will consider facility reconfiguration and capital funding in advance of the district’s next housing‑aid application this fall.
