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Lincoln council approves submitting Stage 2 school‑construction application to state
Summary
The council voted to approve the school committee’s submission of a Stage 2 necessity application to RIDE by Sept. 15, seeking state approval that would lock a reported 44.3% reimbursement rate; the application lists roughly $23 million in possible work and relies on a $13 million local revolving fund for initial projects.
The Lincoln Town Council on Sept. 9 voted to approve submitting the school department’s Stage 2 necessity application to the Rhode Island Department of Education, the formal step that maintains eligibility for state reimbursement on planned school construction and renovations.
School department representatives told the council the Stage 2 package totals about $23,000,000 but stressed that the town would not necessarily fund every listed project; the immediate effect of Stage 2 approval is to lock in the district’s base reimbursement rate for the next five years, which the presenters said would be 44.3 percent under current calculations.
A school representative said the district has already used revolving‑fund resources and outside grants to complete earlier work and that recent action enabled a 50 percent reimbursement on a STEM project contingent on final bonuses. Officials said the town’s revolving fund is projected to hold roughly $13,000,000 over the next five years and that the building committee will bring individual projects and contracts back to the council for approval before work begins.
The council amended the motion to specify the filing responsibility and then approved the school committee’s submission of the Stage 2 application to RIDE, which must be filed by Sept. 15. Councilors and school staff discussed project priorities such as bathroom facilities at Ferguson Field, new and renovated gym spaces, playground replacements and HVAC and window projects across multiple schools; officials said some work is already complete and some projects would be phased based on funding and design.
The council’s approval authorizes the district to seek state reimbursement and does not by itself appropriate funds for construction; each contract and project will return to the council for separate review and votes.
