School department outlines deferred‑maintenance, bicentennial roof and security as top capital priorities

Sean Smith of the school department presented the district’s capital priorities to an ad hoc Nashua Board of Aldermen committee, saying the district operates 18 schools and administration buildings totaling roughly 2,000,000 square feet with about 9,700 students and some 2,400 staff.

"You all know all this information already but for a complete presentation, again we have 18 schools," Smith said, listing four schools — Bicentennial, Dr. Crisp, Mount Pleasant and New Searles — that were last renovated about 30 years ago and now face major system replacement needs.

Smith said the district has used deferred‑maintenance funds for projects such as resurfacing the North High School track, partial paving and targeted roof repairs, and is developing a facility master plan after three public forums. He described the master plan work as near completion and said he expects a final report this summer.

On FY27 priorities, Smith said the administration typically leads with deferred maintenance and asked for $1.2 million but currently expects a funding level closer to $500,000. He identified the Bicentennial Elementary roof as the district’s immediate priority and outlined three potential capital directions: complete the North High paving (about $1.4 million remaining), a major high‑school roof replacement (multi‑million dollar projects), or investment in a districtwide security system (roughly $500,000 per year over two years).

"I always lead off with deferred maintenance and we ask for 1,200,000," Smith said, adding that the largest portion of a roof project is construction and that the district will pursue design in the coming months so projects can be awarded in spring to be ready for summer construction.

Alderman Dowd told the committee he had sponsored legislation to repurpose previously bonded funds to cover the Bicentennial roof and estimated about $1.6 million could be available without issuing a new bond. Smith and Dowd estimated the Bicentennial roof construction would be in the neighborhood of $1.4 million, with exact cost sensitive to fuel and petroleum prices.

Mario Andre, superintendent of schools, said recommendations from the district’s Herriman study are expected this summer and that any decision to close a school would be preceded by community outreach and boundary adjustments. "That’s our hope is that we will get recommendations coming this summer," Andre said.

Next steps: the committee scheduled Community Development to return at a future meeting and discussed sequencing design and construction across fiscal years; Smith said design work for major projects would begin this year with construction phases planned in FY28 and later.

The committee adjourned after scheduling follow‑ups.