To the Editor:

After numerous annual grant applications, Wareham was selected as one of just twenty-six Massachusetts State Building Authority core program grant recipients in 2016. Since that time, hundreds of volunteer hours, and thousands of proposal pages have evaluated the feasibility of each and every potential solution in order to secure roughly $50M in state grant funding to offset approximately 74.98 percent of eligible project costs of a new elementary school. Now it is time for Wareham residents to do their part by educating themselves on this tremendous opportunity leading up to the polls on November 6 where ballot Question #4 will determine the fate of the proposed project.

The pressing need for a new elementary school is compelling and one that will not simply go away. Minot Forest Elementary School is no longer a healthy site for children and has been closed. Decas Elementary School has also reached the parameters under which the state building authority has recommend evaluation of repair or replacement as part of the Minot study. Current issues include asbestos in the ceiling and floor, lead in the water, an outdated electrical system, and an inefficient HVAC system that cost the town thousands of extra dollars each year.

I believe strongly that we have a responsibility to provide our youngest residents a safe and inviting place to learn.  I also believe that we have an equal responsibility to minimize the tax impact on Wareham residents and there will never again be a time when the cost to the Wareham taxpayer will be lower. The current proposal is one of the most cost effective plans the state will receive this year. It is designed to minimize unused space, lower yearly costs to the Town, and maximize the amount of money the state will contribute toward the project.  Every dollar paid by the state is one less dollar incurred by the Town and passed on to taxpayers.

Should the proposed project fail to receive funding authorization from voters, the approximately $50 million in state assistance will be withdrawn and reallocated to one of the other 150+ applicants pending community support. Rejecting the current opportunity and instead choosing to build the same school five years from now will cost Wareham taxpayers millions more. On a second attempt (in the unlikely event the Town receives a state grant at all) the reimbursement rate will be lower as the state will not contribute towards a subsequent feasibility study or schematic design. Not only will reimbursement rates come down but the actual cost of building or repairing tends to rise every year. As voters we can either vote to fund a portion ($40 million) of the costs for a new elementary school today or face the grim prospect of funding 100 percent of necessary repairs ($74 million in today’s dollars) in the not too distant future. It simply does not make economic sense to wait for reimbursement rates to be less, builders to charge more, and interest rates to rise. The time to build is now.

The need for a new school will not go away, but $50 million in state funding to offset the cost of a new school most certainly will. Voting yes on Question #4 will not only maximize the educational opportunity for Wareham’s youngest residents, it will minimize the tax implications for Wareham homeowners as well. I urge all Wareham residents to attend the Oct. 22 town meeting and approve the motion allowing the Town to borrow and appropriate the funds necessary to construct the new school.  Further, I urge all Wareham residents to cast their ballot at the November 6 State Election as necessary to secure funding for Wareham’s share of the project costs. Your vote can truly make the difference.  

Vote yes for our children. Vote yes for our taxpayers. Vote yes on Question #4.  Vote yes for Wareham!

Tracey Denton

Wareham Taxpayer