HOLYOKE — Holyoke has moved onto the next phase in its quest to replace William R. Peck School.
On April 27, the Massachusetts School Building Authority, or MSBA, voted to partner with the city to conduct a feasibility study for building a new middle school at the current Peck site. In February, the City Council voted to bond for $475,000 to pay for the feasibility study.
Two years ago, many city and school officials worked to pass a Proposition 2½ debt-exclusion override at the ballot box to cover the costs of building two new middle schools to replace Peck and H.B. Lawrence Elementary School. Voters overwhelmingly rejected the proposal, however, which would have cost taxpayers $54 million, with the MSBA funding the remaining $75.8 million.
Following the failed debt-exclusion override vote, the city got back in line in the MSBA’s process for a one-school project that some, including Mayor Joshua Garcia, have said won’t require voters to pass a tax override to cover costs.
However, four members of the City Council voted against spending any money on the feasibility study, questioning whether Holyoke can afford to build a new school building. Had a fifth councilor voted with them, the city would not have been able to bond for the study — a prerequisite needed to secure substantial reimbursement for the project from the MSBA.
Built in 1973, Peck has substantial problems that need resolved, including internal classrooms with no windows, mechanical systems at the end of their design lives or missing vital components that are no longer made, classrooms Wi-Fi can’t reach, unusable science labs, a hexagonal design that blocks internal visibility and teachers’ ability to monitor the halls, windows that don’t open and many spaces that make teaching difficult, according to school district employees.
Before the MSBA voted to accept Holyoke into its next phase, several city officials spoke, including state Rep. Pat Duffy.
“I am grateful for the MSBA considering the plan for a new middle school in Holyoke,” Duffy said. “We’ve had to reconsider our path forward in recent years, and the MSBA has worked with us and invited us in to apply for a new round of funding to build a new middle school.”
Dusty Christensen can be reached at dchristensen@gazettenet.com.