Blackstone-Millville school committee delays return to Millville, seeks MSBA clarity and pilot data before moving students

The Blackstone‑Millville Regional School Committee voted on May 28 to postpone moving students back to Millville Elementary for the 2025–26 school year until it receives written clarification from the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) about any potential loan clawback and until monitoring data from a proposed pilot filtration system are available.

The vote followed a lengthy public forum in which multiple residents urged caution, citing costs of prior moves and continued worries about water safety. Gene Marvan, a Blackstone resident, said the district had spent about $75,000 for the last move and feared another expensive, uncertain relocation. Other parents and teachers told the committee they do not want students and staff re‑exposed until the water issues are proven resolved.

The committee also heard a presentation from the town of Millville and its engineering consultant, McClure Engineering, about a state‑backed pilot program. A letter read to the committee from Mary J. Pigsley of the state drinking water program stated that, “bottled water is not required for any uses other than drinking water,” and that as long as the town provides bottled water there would be no exposure exceeding Massachusetts drinking water standards. The letter further noted the town’s grant award of $1 million and that the project funds must be spent by 2030.

Christopher McClure of McClure Engineering described the pilot filtration system being proposed to remove total organic carbon and disinfectant byproduct precursors. He explained that the pilot requires roughly one year of monitoring, with sampling three to five times weekly, and that while the consultants expect the treatment to produce clean results immediately, regulators request a full year of data to evaluate long‑term effectiveness and operating costs. “This system could be installed by early June” in an expedited permitting scenario, McClure said during the presentation.

Town officials emphasized that the town of Millville has committed to provide bottled water to the school while the pilot proceeds, and that grant funds are designated for treatment and permitting work rather than ongoing bottled water costs. Committee members repeatedly requested written confirmation from MSBA about whether continuing to keep students out of Millville for another year could trigger any reimbursement or clawback obligation related to prior MSBA decisions; the committee cited an outstanding $850,000 MSBA loan issue as a concern raised during discussion.

After extended discussion about health risk, timeline, monitoring requirements and fiscal exposure, Committee Member Tara Scobby moved that the district not move students back to Millville for school year 2025–26 “pending confirmation from MSBA that there is no clawback on the loan and subject to 180 days of testing/results” (the motion language is recorded in the meeting minutes). The motion was seconded by Carrie Goddette and approved by voice vote.

The committee and administration agreed to keep the Millville placement matter on the agenda as a standing item and to pursue the requested MSBA written confirmation and early pilot test results. Administrators testified they will continue to coordinate with Millville officials and the engineering team on permitting, system installation, initial sampling results, and any additional steps such as lining or drilling wells that are included in the grant scope.

Next steps announced: Millville will notify the district if the state completes permit review and approves the pilot; the administration will seek MSBA confirmation about any loan/clawback exposure; and the committee will revisit the placement decision if the pilot yields compelling evidence of safe water and MSBA provides favorable guidance. The committee also asked district staff to keep staff and families informed and to return with any new written materials before reconsidering the move.

Quotes from the meeting capture the tone: “We were told last time that we would only go to Millville if it was 100% fixed,” a resident said, urging the committee to hold the line. McClure told the committee that the pilot is intended to produce data to establish long‑term operational costs and effectiveness, while the town reiterated its commitment to provide bottled water during the grant work.

The action leaves the district’s current placements in place for now and sets clear conditions — MSBA confirmation and substantial pilot data — before any students are relocated back to Millville.