Bridgeport committee forwards Bassett High School decommissioning after debate over costs, swing space and safety

The Bridgeport School District ad hoc facilities committee voted to forward a recommendation to the full board to decommission Bassett High School and return the property to the city after a staff presentation outlined mounting carrying costs and safety concerns.

George Garcia, district facilities staff, told the committee the district spent $471,886.89 on utilities in 2025 for the site and that, based on recent usage, the district expects roughly half that amount if it continues to carry the building. Garcia said the district has spent $70,384 on electric at the old Bassett site from September through December, compared with $121,162 at the newer facility during the same period, and estimated recurring monthly vandalism and security costs of about $1,000.

"The building is becoming more and more uninhabitable," Garcia said, noting a cracked boiler section, asbestos tile issues and that most kitchen and IT equipment was removed during decommissioning. He said the building has been broom-cleaned and that retaining it would divert scarce funds from other facilities and staffing needs.

Several board members pushed back that the decision should be considered in the context of the district's facilities master plan. One committee member, citing a facilities estimate discussed previously, said renovating Bassett could cost on the order of $82 million and referenced an approximate state reimbursement rate of 78 percent; that member said the board should not make a final decision without integrating the matter into the master-plan timeline.

Robert Trevor, a committee member who supported forwarding the recommendation, said the district executed a careful decommissioning process at Bassett and preserved materials that should have been saved in prior closures elsewhere. Trevor moved to send the decommissioning item to the full board; his motion was seconded and advanced on a voice vote in committee.

Other members raised the possibility of repurposing Bassett as a swing space or an adult-education site but noted that the capital-approval and grant-application timelines would likely be multi-year. Garcia cautioned that relying on state capital funding could take four to six years and that the building would be increasingly difficult to maintain and increasingly liable in that period.

Miss Jimenez, speaking from a construction background, recommended demolition rather than piecemeal renovation, saying older structures often cost more to retrofit than to replace and reiterating concern about asbestos tile as a health risk.

Nathan Andrew Wilson and Andrew Woodson noted that the facilities condition assessment and master-plan materials have been available to the board and that district occupancy rates are uneven across campuses (many buildings at roughly 40–60 percent). Several members urged a full-board session focused on the master plan and on neighborhood engagement for upcoming projects such as the proposed East End pre-K–8 school.

The committee did not record a roll-call tally in the transcript; the chair called for a voice vote, multiple members answered "Aye," and at least one member said "No for me." The motion to forward decommissioning to the full board was advanced for a full-board decision. The committee then adjourned.

What happens next: the full board will receive the committee's recommendation and decide whether to accept the decommissioning and the suggested return of the property to the city. The committee also requested staff schedule a full-board discussion of the facilities master plan and neighborhood outreach for the East End school proposal.