Mayor and schools present $72M renovation plan for Old Everett High; council defers borrowing vote

Everett officials presented a plan to reconfigure the former Everett High School into a middle‑school configuration and asked the City Council to consider borrowing $72,000,000 for construction, furnishings and equipment. Councilors engaged in detailed questioning about capacity, program impacts and timeline and ultimately postponed a decision to allow more information and participation from absent members.

Superintendent Hutt described persistent overcrowding across district K–8 schools and said the Mount Vernon Group feasibility study and school district analysis indicate the Old Everett High School could house roughly 1,100 seventh and eighth graders with dedicated specialty space. “We have more than 558 current students moving to grade 7, and more than 530 moving to grade 8 next year alone,” he said while walking councilors through the enrollment projections and programmatic rationale.

Architect Frank Tedesco, who led the feasibility work, said the team focused on reutilizing existing classroom layouts and minimizing demolition, noting the project includes a large field house that would be partitioned so the public could continue to use a portion while school activities occur separately. Tedesco said the construction estimate includes contingencies and soft costs: “We tried to utilize everything that was there. We just tried to utilize what’s there and improve it,” he said.

Community members and nonprofit leaders urged caution and asked for firm relocation plans. Liliana Patino of Elliott Human Services described services that operate in the building — including a family resource center and a wellness center — and asked who would provide those services during construction or if the building were repurposed. Nearby urban farms and the Broadway Boxing Club also asked the city to consider construction timing and alternative locations so seasonal programming and youth services are not disrupted.

Councilors questioned differences between renovating Old Everett High School and previously considered alternatives such as Pope John, cost escalation since prior studies, parking and site staging logistics, security and separation of public and school uses, and whether the city would commit to labor and apprenticeship agreements. Councilor Martins pressed for clarity on costs; Tedesco and the superintendent said the $72,000,000 figure includes a construction estimate (noted as roughly $60,100,000 in presentation materials) plus roughly 20 percent in soft costs and contingencies.

Mayor DeMaria told the council the administration would work to find space in the city for organizations displaced by construction and said he would pursue additional state and federal funding. He also said the city could pursue historic‑preservation grants if the building’s listing allowed for it. Councilors ultimately voted to postpone action on the $72,000,000 borrowing until the council’s September 9 meeting so absent members and affected stakeholders could participate.

The administration estimated construction would take about 18 to 24 months from the start of construction; specific phasing, staging areas, and formal drawings will be developed in the next design phase if the council later approves bonding.