Letter: Vote Yes for the Future of North Adams Students
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To the Editor:
On Tuesday, Oct. 8, North Adams voters will be asked to support or reject an investment of $19.6 million in local funding toward the construction of a new $65.4 million prekindergarten to second grade school in the neighborhood where Greylock Elementary School now stands. As community members, neighbors, and taxpayers our choice will determine the future of education in the city, and the experience of North Adams students and educators, for at least the next 50 years.
A YES vote moves the project forward and secures the $42.2 million in state funding committed to build a new school in North Adams.
A NO vote cancels the project.
This project has been thoughtfully planned and collaboratively managed by the school district, School Committee, and the volunteer members of the School Building Committee. These groups have worked on this project since 2019 with support from the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA). The School Building Committee considered several alternatives before recommending the new school building project for which MSBA made its $42.2 million commitment.
These state funds may ONLY be used for the new school building project. If the ballot question fails, those dollars will be granted to another community. In that case, the taxpayers of North Adams will be responsible for the full cost of renovating and maintaining Brayton Elementary School for the foreseeable future. That outcome comes with an estimated cost of up to $45 million with no promise of outside dollars to relieve the local tax burden.
This is an important decision. I know there is concern, and perhaps even a little bit of misinformation in the community, about the proposed debt exclusion. Rather than focus on how we pay our share of the cost over the next 30 years, consider the why — building a new school equal to the potential we see in our children.
Early voting on this question begins on Saturday, Sept. 28. Please visit www.napsk12.org/greylock-school-project to learn more and understand the facts about this project. Then, please share this information with your friends and neighbors to ensure they know they have a civic responsibility to be informed and active voters as well as the opportunity to help create a bright future for the young people of North Adams for years to come.
Thomas Bernard
North Adams, Mass.
Tom Bernard is a former mayor of North Adams, a former chair of the North Adams School Committee, and a founding and former member of the School Building Committee
