Southborough committee hires Tappe Architects, seeks menu of options and sets biweekly schedule

The Town of Southborough elementary building committee opened its meeting by saying an executed contract with Tappe Architects is in place and handing the first public update to the consulting team. Chris, Tappe’s principal in charge, told the committee the firm has downloaded previous MSBA documents and will use them as the basis for the next phase of work while scheduling a building tour to verify existing conditions.

The consultants described their roles: Chris said he will lead community engagement and educational alignment; Cesar will handle technical drawing review and building assessments; and Jen will manage the project and day-to-day communications. Chris told the committee the next deliverable will be a written work plan and road map laying out milestones and when decisions and reviews will be in front of the committee.

“We will produce a work plan and our road map for how we’re going to get all the work done… and when you can expect that decisions might be in front of you,” Chris said. He added the team would act in an intermediary capacity where an owner's project manager is not directly engaged.

Committee members emphasized the importance of presenting multiple options. Jason Milanoski, who chaired the prior MSBA-related committee, said the earlier process narrowed options too late and left the public without choices. “We need… expertise and help from all of you to bring forward multiple options to the community,” he said. Consultants agreed: rather than advancing a single, fully developed schematic for one option, they will carry a “light schematic” level of documentation that can present a menu of additive options with layered cost estimates.

Chris explained that the work will go beyond a superficial review but stop short of a single, full schematic for one option so the town can see a range of possibilities. “It’s probably a light schematic design in terms of industry standard but…it’ll carry forward multiple options or a menu of options that can be additive,” he said.

The committee discussed scheduling and outreach. Town leaders had set a special town meeting date of Oct. 17; members suggested that date could be used to present an informational update. Consultants cautioned October is tight for a comprehensive package but agreed an update at that meeting would be feasible. The committee and consultants tentatively agreed to meet again on July 8 and then every two weeks, with off‑week touchpoints among staff and consultants.

Members also urged use of the prior project’s public website as a centralized repository of documents, renderings and videos; consultants confirmed they had reviewed the materials and would rely on them where appropriate. The meeting closed after a motion to adjourn carried in a roll-call vote.