New cost estimates: Rebuilding at Rundlett would cost $8 million more than at Broken Ground

A new middle school in the South End would carry an $8 million higher price tag than one of the same size in East Concord, according to a new comparison presented to the Concord Board of Education.

The new cost comparisons for each location from architects and engineers come as the public waits for the board to make a decision in what has become a lengthy process. Members shot down another attempt to build a new school at raw land near the Broken Ground school and said they’ll proceed after a public hearing.

Building a school at the current site of Rundlett Middle School is now estimated at $164.6 million while continuing at Broken Ground would now cost $156.5 million — up from the $152 million budget approved in July.

A new school at Rundlett would open to students in either fall 2029 or winter 2030, depending on whether the school board decides on a location this month or holds a referendum in June — the earliest the city clerk has said a special election would be possible. If plans continued at Broken Ground after a public vote the opening of a new school would be 2029.

Some of the information presented — including line-by-line site cost details for each location — had been requested by the public for months. Other parts affirmed arguments the board has made in defense of the Broken Ground site for the last year — that a rebuild at Rundlett would cost more and take longer than one at Broken Ground and disrupt sports, traffic and learning at the current school.

Among the crowd of 50 attendees and near-hour of public testimony, the information did little to change how anyone felt about the drawn-out process.

Those who believe the South End is the better location and worth some extra costs and delays weren’t moved.

“This board had a year following the December 2023 vote to try to persuade people that building at Broken Ground was the right thing to do … people didn’t buy it,” said Chris Galdieri. “Stop indulging in this Broken Ground fan fiction about something that is never going to happen, that the city does not want.”

Those who feared that the contentiousness over the location decision and charter amendments were a costly pursuit for students and taxpayers alike now had numbers to underline their frustration.

“We made the right decision back in December, you guys stood up for it back in June,” Sera Calvin said. “We are wasting time. We are wasting money…We need to be the adults here and not let people with bad faith arguments sway 43,000 people’s future.”

To Ian McGregor, the only way to prove what path a majority of residents prefer is to hold a vote.

The lowest price-tag and fastest school, which would be at Broken Ground according to the latest construction estimates, would be different from the most environmentally and developmentally prudent school, which would be in the already walkable, built-up neighborhood on South Street, he said. The public, and the board, would have to pick which is the most important.

“Let’s make sure we’re all on the same page and move forward from there,” McGregor said. “If a vote of the people is the best way to do that, then I’m in support of a public vote.”

To move the project to Rundlett, the board needs to hold another public hearing formally announcing that possibility, according to its attorney. After a frank discussion, that’s what the board decided to do. The time has yet to be finalized.

“Every group in here can find 50 people to say why they’re right,” board member Barb Higgins remarked. “Nine of us have to figure out how to make that work for the community.”

The board made clear that, one more time, they hope constituents will turn out and say whether they want a vote, or if they want the board to choose a location.

All options remain on the table. A motion made by board member Brenda Hastings to stick with the original Broken Ground plan and timeline failed in a 7-2 vote, and a move made by Cara Meeker to nix an election from the slate of options was narrowly defeated 5-4. 

Madeleine Mineau, is one of many residents, who feel like they’ve gone to meetings about the middle school and heard the same things over and over.

At this point, she doesn’t care where they put a new middle school, she said. She just wants one as soon as possible, and she’s angry that after another year the board is in much the same place it was before, only with more costs and more delays.

“We’re going to keep having middle school meetings, and we’re going to keep telling you the same thing,” she said. “I don’t want to vote on a location. I voted for some of you  to make that  decision.”