Westport in Brief!
EverythingWestport.com
Thursday, September 8, 2016
photos/EverythingWestport.com except as
noted
Building committee inclined to give nod to
Middle School property for new school site.
Noquochoke Village Awarded State Funding For Housing
Development.
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Building committee inclined
to give nod to middle school property for new school site. School building committee to
pick final plan on Wednesday, September 14th. EverythingWestport.com Thursday,
September 8, 2016
Special Correspondent to
EverythingWestport.com WESTPORT
— The Westport School Building Committee seems to be focusing on a preferred
option of using the Westport Middle School site as the likely location for a
new school building. The
School Building Committee (SBC) has scheduled a Wednesday, September 14th
meeting to choose between the final “best option” scenarios for a new school,
and hopes to finalize a plan for submission to the Mass. School Building
Authority reimbursement program at a Wednesday, September 21st joint meeting
with selectmen and the Westport School Committee. If all
goes well, the town will submit a preferred option plan to the MSBA by Thursday, September 29th, so the schematic plans
can be considered at the state panel’s Wednesday, November 9th meeting, said,
project manager Dan Tavares. Some building committee members, including
Selectman Tony Vieira, want a strong push to get final building plans and
funding options finalized by February so the town’s request for funding
assistance could be heard by the MSBA in March. With
state reimbursement funds known by spring, there is a possibility that a
funding request for finalized plans for a new school could be on the warrant
for the annual town meeting in May. SBC
co-chairwoman Dianne Baron said she would like an SBC vote on a site and
building configuration before Wednesday, September 21st, so that selectmen
and the School Committee could ratify the vote at that meeting, she said. The building committee seems to be
favoring final concept plans focusing on the middle school site, closed to
students since the start of the 2015-16 school year. The MSBA
is likely to contribute to the costs of demolition and remediation of the old school building, but not help
pay costs if a new facility is built on the high school site. Committee
members said Wednesday that they need time to review coming information on
traffic studies, and the five final options for buildings at both
sites. Baron said a preferred option should be selected at the next
meeting, along with related plans for a single or multiple entrances to the
school campus. The
most discussed option at the Wednesday, September 7th meeting were two
variants of a combined middle school and high school facility, with
construction of a new middle school near Macomber
Elementary being the first phase of a two-part plan. The high school addition
could be planned for a later date, beside the new middle school, it was
suggested. Both
buildings would be located to the north of the present school structure,
where the site would be cleared and leveled for new athletic fields. The
relocation of the library entrance was also suggested as a simultaneous
safety improvement if plans move forward with the middle school site. The
middle school has been closed to students since the contaminant PCB found in
caulking, carpeting and ceiling tiles, leading to a high cost of remediation
if rehabbed or repurposed. Middle schoolers who once attended classes there
are now at Westport High School. A
traffic count of vehicles using Old County Road from the Head of Westport to
the Route 88 intersection is in the works, and would likely impact driveway plans.
The district has 15 buses, 44 parent pick-ups per day, and just over 100
staff vehicles to accommodate with access road and parking plans if both an
elementary and middle school were located there.
A
combine Middle School/High School complex on Old County Road would certainly exacerbate
the problem, Association members told a Traffic Study group recently
assembled by Town Administrator, Tim King at their first public meeting told
a new Traffic The
School Committee was troubled that if such a choice were made, could it lead
to a traffic bottle-neck heading west toward Route 88. The
SBC has scheduled another meeting for Wednesday, September 14th and is hoping
that a final decision will be made on Wednesday, September 21st at a joint
selectmen, SBC and School Committee meeting. Sidebar: Head
neighborhood residents school newly-formed “Traffic and Parking Committee” on
parking, speeding, congestion issues at the historic Head of Westport. Architect
Johnathan Levi said the modern school designs of today favor project-based
learning centers, lecture halls and outdoor work spaces over traditional
classroom layouts. Small breakout spaces in between offer places for team
work, student mentoring, and study nooks. Pre-planning
and site prep could leave a suitable site for a high school addition on the
northern edge of the property in the future, the architect suggested. Room
for future expansion would be left on both building plans, he indicated. All of
the open space near Old County Road could be used for athletic fields, with
enough room for two baseball diamonds, a soccer field, and a field hockey
pitch, if desired by the athletic department. If two adjacent schools were
planned, each would have its own auditorium and gymnasiums. The
addition of a second school at the Old County Road site would make the
widening of the access boulevard a necessity, the architect said. Traffic
consultant Amy Archer said a signal light at the end of the boulevard, and a
second access point, would be options for further investigation. Vieira
said he liked the option of giving the taxpayers the opportunity of building
a middle school now, and a high school later. He also favored the “welcoming”
aspect of new athletic fields in front of the building, saying it would be a
selling point with voters. Committee
member Mark Carney noted that the cost of building new athletic fields could
similarly be stretched out over a period of years to soften the economic
impact. Superintendent
Ann-Marie Dargon also favored the concept of
roadside athletic fields “showcasing our students and their performances.”
Town Administrator Tim King said such athletic fields would generate the need
for more parking spaces near the road. If the
high school student body was eventually relocated to a new building on
another campus, there is already some discussion of re-purposing part of the
current high school as town office space. Noquochoke Village Awarded State Funding For Housing
Development. EverythingWestport.com Thursday,
September 8, 2016 BOSTON
- Members of the Westport Affordable Housing Trust Fund traveled to Boston to
join the Baker-Polito Administration for an
announcement that the Noquochoke Village project in Westport will be awarded
state funding and tax credits to aid in the construction of new, affordable
housing units. Noquochoke
Village will consist of fifty quality, mixed-income
apartments in townhouse style buildings as well as a community center.
“70%
of the units will be reserved for ‘Westporters’,” said State Representative
Paul Schmid (D-Westport). “This means
those young folks who have grown up in town and want to stay here, as well as
the seniors who wish to downsize but remain part of our community.” The
development also aims to be environmentally friendly, according to Affordable
Housing Trust Fund Chair Liz Collins. In an
effort to reduce pollution and further protect the Westport River, the project
will include the installation of a state-of-the-art
nitrogen reducing septic system that will eliminate virtually all nitrogen
output from the development. The
2016 affordable rental housing award round, administered through the
Department of Housing and Community Development, reflects the Baker-Polito Administration’s ongoing commitment to
substantially invest in housing across the Commonwealth.
Shown above
(L-R): State Representative Paul
Schmid (D-Westport) and Undersecretary of Housing and Community Development
Chrystal Kornegay join board members Warren
Messier, Chair Liz Collins, and Vice-Chair Craig Dutra. Submitted Photo © 2016 Community Events of
Westport. All rights reserved. EverythingWestport.com |
