Medomak Valley High School in Waldoboro, constructed in 1968, is the centerpiece of an $81 million capital improvement bond for renovations and additions approved by the RSU 40 Board of Directors to appear before voters this November. (Elizabeth Walztoni photo)
RSU 40 voters will consider an $81 million bond this November to fund renovations and additions for all eight district schools, with a focus on Medomak Valley High School and Miller School in Waldoboro.
The district’s board of directors approved the bond question for a November vote at its Thursday, May 4 meeting, following a failed motion to place the question on the ballot for its member towns of Friendship, Union, Waldoboro, Warren, and Washington this June.
Brian Race, RSU 40 facilities director, presented plans for the four- to five-year proposal of districtwide upgrades; $41 million is dedicated to MVHS and $16 million to Miller School.
Board members have discussed waiting for state funding to build a new high school through the Maine Department of Education’s Major Capital School Construction Program, which rates submissions by priority on a seven-year application cycle.
MVHS is number 53 on the current priority list, which was developed in 2017. No other district schools are listed.
“The cavalry is not coming, unfortunately,” Race said. “We’re going to have to make some hard decisions.”
Over the last 20 years, eight high schools have been replaced statewide through the program. Only 10 schools total have been funded so far on the current list, according to Race.
He said he proposed renovations because constructing a new school to replace the 55-year-old building without state funding could triple or quadruple the price tag.
Renovations would not disqualify the school from its spot on the list, according to Race.
Lisa Sawin, of the Portland-based Harriman Associates architecture firm, and engineer Kerri Warms, of Energy Efficient Investments Inc., who advised the proposal, attended the meeting to provide details.
Major plans for the high school include a $9 million, 15,000-square-foot addition to connect the science and social studies wings, creating a courtyard at the center of the building; replacement of the water treatment system and a septic field that Race said has effectively already failed; a boiler replacement; and the addition of a generator.
Renovations would also include asbestos abatement, electrical upgrades, a new roof for the greenhouse, roof shingle repairs, an updated sprinkler system, exterior upgrades, and safety and security improvements.
The high school, constructed in 1968, has been at risk of losing its accreditation for more than 15 years in large part because of its facilities.
The New England Association of Schools and Colleges placed MVHS on probation in 2007 and upgraded it to warning status in 2017, where it remains today, according to previous board packets.
Ventilation improvements made with federal pandemic relief funding have demonstrated an effort towards compliance, Race said, but administration is waiting to hear how long the school can remain on warning before its accreditation is pulled.
“What we don’t know is when the bottom is going to fall out on this,” he said.
Miller School, another significant part of the bond work, is 15,000 square feet too small for its current student population by DOE standards, according to Sawin.
She said some staff teaches in closets and in the basement of the school, which was built over 60 years ago and added to several times into the 1980s.
A $6.3 million, 12,000-square-foot addition would add per-student square footage to the amount recommended by the DOE, including additional classroom and meeting space.
Sawin said education has changed to offer more one-on-one support and services to students, requiring more rooms like these.
Almost $6 million of renovations would cover projects including asbestos abatement, fire alarm and suppression upgrades, heating control valve replacements, and safety and security updates.
The bond would also replace and expand the parking lot at the school, replace much of the playground, and refurbish the ball field, among other items.
Medomak Middle School in Waldoboro, built in 2011, would see water system, athletic, and safety and security upgrades. The shared parking lot for MVHS and MMS would be resurfaced and replaced, along with the sidewalk and track and repairs to culverts.
Artificial turf installation on the soccer and football field would reduce games missed because of weather leaving the field unplayable, alongside other improvements to shared athletic facilities.
Warren Elementary, Prescott Memorial, Friendship Village, and Union Elementary schools would all receive smaller upgrades including boilers, generators, ventilation improvements, and safety and security updates, according to Race.
A bus garage, either purchased or built, would provide service for the entire district.
Race said the projects would save the district $550,000 annually in energy costs alone, including repair costs, particularly with aging boilers being replaced by propane heat.
The bond item as proposed would have put it before voters in June along with the regular district budget.
That motion failed 325-551 using the board’s weighted population-based voting formula.
Board members speaking against this motion disagreed with the timeline of the proposal and felt it was too sudden for taxpayers to learn about the project and buy into it.
“I feel we’re rushing this, and when you rush, you make mistakes,” board Chair Danny Jackson, of Waldoboro, said.
Those in favor said the needs of the district were already evident and delaying the approval further would lead costs to rise even more.
“All we’ve done in the last 50 years is put Band-Aids on things,” member Melvin Williams, of Waldoboro, said.
A motion to put the bond on the November ballot passed 679-197.
Members said they wanted to invite the public into the buildings and hold forums for them to see the conditions of both schools and provide input before the autumn.
Race said after the meeting that next steps include finalizing some project designs, scheduling public meetings at each school to answer questions, and meeting with municipal officials.
The RSU 40 Board of Directors will next meet at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 18 in the district’s central offices at 1070 Heald Highway in Union and online.
