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NEW BEDFORD — The first draft of a strategic plan calling for more than $1 billion to rebuild or renovate the city’s aging schools will be presented at Monday night’s School Committee meeting. The ambitious plan would replace seven of the district’s 100-year-old elementary schools with four newer, larger, and more efficient buildings by 2035. It also calls for a full renovation of New Bedford High School by 2038.
“This represents a direction and a strategy, and what we’ve outlined is where every future school falls in that,” said Superintendent Andrew O’Leary. “This is the best direction, the strongest direction for New Bedford right now. And I think we have the experience to get it done.” But O’Leary added, “Whether that gets fulfilled is up to state policy.”
All of the projects will rely heavily on the Massachusetts School Building Authority, the independent state agency that can elect to take up — or deny — school construction projects based on its own criteria. Each of New Bedford’s proposed projects will go through a highly competitive application process, said Matthew Donovan, the building authority’s director of administration and operations.
None of the projects are guaranteed to happen, and cost estimates and timelines are likely to change over time. But if the state’s building authority does approve all of New Bedford’s plans over the next 15 years, it could fund between 60% and 80% of the costs. That might mean up to $800 million in state assistance that could remake the education landscape in New Bedford.
A $650 million renovation of New Bedford High School is by far the largest capital plan within the strategy document. That project would completely rebuild the fourth largest high school in Massachusetts between 2031 and 2038. Without anywhere to relocate the students during construction, district officials expect to undertake a staged renovation where one house is renovated at a time. (New Bedford High is divided into four houses, or wings.)
Each application to the state will require the approval of New Bedford’s School Committee, City Council, and mayor — and the failure of any of these parties to get behind any project could kill it.
“It’s important to be aligned,” O’Leary said, “and for the most part, over the last 10 years, we have been.”
Two new elementary school projects, Congdon-DeValles and Ashley-Swift, are already underway with the state. The City Council votes next week on the next step in the Ashley-Swift project, and O’Leary said he is confident this vote will pass.
The purpose of the new strategic plan, O’Leary said, is to help such steps make sense: “The [City] Council and the public at large need to know where this sits in a longer-term direction.”
Here are all the projects in the district’s new strategic plan.
Congdon-DeValles: Approved and on track
Last year, the Massachusetts School Building Authority awarded $70 million toward the $119 million project to build a new Congdon-DeValles Elementary school, with plans to start construction in 2025. The brand-new elementary building will combine students from two of the city’s 100-year-old buildings.
Feasibility studies, architectural drawings, and site selection have all been completed. Construction on the former Goodyear site in the city’s South End (a stone’s throw from the current DeValles Elementary) is set to begin in 2025. Already this year, the School Committee voted to approve “Congdon-DeValles Elementary” as the name of the new building.
“The new Congdon-DeValles will be walkable for all children there,” said Barry Rabinovitch, the assistant superintendent of finance and operations. “It will be a true neighborhood school.”
Ashley-Swift: In early stages of study and approval
Last year, the plans for a new Ashley-Swift school were accepted into the state building authority’s pipeline — meaning that project is already on track, too.
Next week, after Monday’s School Committee meeting, the City Council will vote on appropriating $1.5 million for a feasibility study that’s required for the Ashley-Swift project. (This amount could also be eligible for 60%-80% reimbursement from the school building authority.)
The new Ashley-Swift school will likely be located on the same site as the current Ashley Elementary, according to district officials, on a large lot next to Brooklawn Park, in the city’s near North End.
The name “Ashley-Swift” is a placeholder signifying that the new school will house students from Ashley and Swift Elementaries — two more of the city’s 100-year-old school buildings.
Rabinovitch, the district’s financial manager, said that he has already attended preliminary meetings with Massachusetts School Building Authority officials regarding this project. He expects those officials to come back soon with the numbers that outline how many students this new school should be built for.
The City Council will eventually need to vote again to approve the total cost of the project, which the district said will be known in April 2027. The school could open in January 2029, according to the strategic plan. A preliminary cost assessment was listed at $100 million.
Rodman-Winslow: A new announcement to consolidate schools
The strategic plan also served as the first public announcement of another big-ticket school consolidation. Rodman and Winslow Elementary Schools, both schools of about 200 students located in the city’s West End, will be the next 100-year-old buildings slated to combine.
Few details exist for this project, as the district doesn’t intend to submit a statement of interest until April 2027. However, this plan demonstrates the district’s commitment to consolidating its small, aging elementary schools.
“It’s better for the school environment,” said Rabinovitch. Fewer schools mean that the district doesn’t have to duplicate or stretch thin its resources, “like all the schools having their own [physical education] teacher, and not one that goes from school to school,” Rabinovitch said by way of example.
Rodman-Winslow would come next after the Ashley-Swift project. If all goes according to plan, the district believes a new school could open in January 2032 for an estimated $100 million.
Pacheco: Remaking the near North End’s school
Another new announcement calls for replacing the Pacheco school. The district intends to begin the process in 2028, when the Pacheco school will turn 120 years old.
Another $100 million is the preliminary estimate to replace this school, which currently enrolls around 250 students. Rabinovitch said the district may redraw some district lines when the school is replaced, so that its enrollment grows. “Some families may not be happy,” Rabinovitch said. “But it’s something to be discussed.”
As for why a Pacheco renovation would come before a high school makeover, Rabinovitch said the district wants to start its investments among its youngest cohorts. “You build from the foundation up,” he said.
A new Pacheco school could open in 2035.
New Bedford High: A massive project for one of the state’s biggest schools
The new strategic plan describes the New Bedford High project as a “complete renovation.” District officials came up with a preliminary estimate of $650 million by looking at comparable projects, O’Leary said, including Brockton’s planned new high school, which the Massachusetts School Building Authority recently welcomed into its project pipeline. (This project alone could cost up to $1 billion, according to local media.)
The high school will be the last major rebuild or renovation in New Bedford’s strategic plan. The district doesn’t plan to submit a statement of interest until 2031, and construction isn’t forecast to be completed until 2038. And that’s if everything goes according to plan.
Rabinovitch said that the district can wait slightly longer because of recent investments into the high school, including new athletic facilities, fields, and security improvements. The high school, completed in the 1970s, is not nearly as old as the centenarian elementary buildings.
Bruce Oliveira, who chairs the school board’s Finance Subcommittee, said that the early thinking among district officials is to tackle the project in stages: fully renovating one house at a time.
“There’s nowhere to put the kids in the meantime, so you’d have to do it in stages,” he said. “It’s a necessary evil.” Oliveira, who has served on the School Committee since 2013, said he does not intend to serve long enough to see this plan completed.
Email Colin Hogan at chogan@newbedfordlight.org
Very clear writing, lots of context on how these projects actually get done which I didn’t know before. New Bedford needs reporting like this. Great job Colin.
wow, the press just glazing each other in the comments, what happened to the game that I love
Unless the project is fully funded, the city taxpayers can’t afford this. The city budget is already busting at the seams and the city cannot continue to spend money that the city does not have, by raising taxes.
I wholeheartedly agree with Jeff R.
I also agree, but since Massachusetts is a self proclaimed “Sanctuary State” that has drawn a significant number of illegal immigrants over the past four years, and has a liberal socialist Democrat Governor in Maura Healy who was elected by over 60% of state voters, and is fiercely opposed to the mass deportation of illegal immigrants, I’d say the tax payers who continue to elect, and re-elect the 70% of State Representatives, and State Senators who are Democrats that tax and spend their way out of fiscal responsibility, the city & state tax payers who voted for these clowns are partially responsible for a lot of the problems that affect your finances.
It was recently reported that over $1 Billion tax payer dollars were diverted from various state agencies to fund the costs of hotel & motel rooms, food, clothing, healthcare, dental care. and schools to educate the children, and fund the needs of illegal immigrants who have no right to be in America, let alone Massachusetts with our tax dollars being wasted on them.
Did you vote yes to allow elected state government officials to declare Massachusetts a Sanctuary State that welcomes illegal immigrants and financially support illegal immigrants with your tax dollars? Did you vote in favor of increased property and state income taxes to build 7 new schools in New Bedford, with all of them allowing every illegal immigrant who has never paid a dime in state, federal, or local taxes, to enroll every one of their children at the expense of the tax payers? Neither did I, those questions weren’t on the ballot I filled out and voted for or against in November, yet no state or local elected officials are held accountable for any of this, we’re all suppose to just smile while Democrats pick our pockets and tell us it’s mandatory because no Democrat has ever cut taxes or spending, and it’s sickening!!!!!
Right on Catherine. I totally agree. Do you know anything about the fenced off area at the High School I heard from an employee that their building a health clinic for illegals. If this is true it need to be reported. I’m researching this.
“It’s important to be aligned,” O’Leary said, “and for the most part, over the last 10 years, we have been.”
Alignment is a lovely idea but the Mayor cannot be trusted. He would support a project like this for what the businesses involved would get. He’s not supportive of the residents and students. The Mayor supports Parallel Products, rebranding as South Coast Renewables, in their determined efforts to expand their business in the New Bedford Business Park – a place they never should’ve been. The expansion would lead to dangerous pollution, increased traffic, stressed infrastructure and likely, increased taxes. In the more locally affected area, there are TWO SCHOOLS.
The Mayor does not want to improve the quality of education for the children. He wants the businesses associated with construction to make money and boost his influence. He exploits this city to do so. Transfer stations are in the business of trash. The more trash they bring in, the more money they make. A key customer base for them is in the construction & destruction line of work.
All this construction would mean money for Parallel Products…. The transfer station is not a project that has ALIGNED support. There are City Councilors opposed to it, at the very least. (The Mayor originally opposed the project but that may have been a ruse because he eagerly silenced himself, when given half the chance.) I don’t know if the NB School Committee has weighed in officially but I know there are others affiliated with the schools that don’t want TRASH and WASTE near KIDS!
Look for the connections and the deeper consequences. What is the Mayor’s true vision for New Bedford and how many more of us will he sideline to get what he wants? Will he push to close farther up, north end schools to cover up the consequences of pollution, all the while boasting of a better facility a few more minutes-drive away?
Everyone in authority should be held accountable. The Mayor is no different. He shows you who he is but he hides behind finger-pointing, silence and the illusion of cooperation.
What a brilliant idea, in a city where so many people are complaining about no low income housing available, property tax rates going up as I write this, water and sewer bills 50% higher than last year, and last but not least, a $100 Million dollar police headquarters building.
What a perfect time to discuss more multimillion dollar projects, unbelievable!!!!!
It’s definitely time for me to leave New Bedford, happily.
Keep voting Mitchell in! School head staff should be voted in by the people, the people of New Bedford. The ones chosen should be residents of New Bedford, resident meaning where they sleep and eat permanent, not as a girlfriend/boyfriend just to get the position.
New schools great. God forbid kids today should have to sweat in the summer. God forbid the kids don’t have modern day accomodations. I went to school with broken wooden windows that didn’t open. In the winter you could see your breath. But, We were focused to learn. We weren’t allowed to complain. Most important, there is no appreciation for new schools as some, not all, rip paper towel dispenser off bathroom walls, smear human waste on walls, not by an accident by habitually mis behaving. Time to focus on teaching theses kids. They’ll never be respect to elders when kids are not taught it growing up.bafter all school is just a babysitting service for many parents.
To all the parents who do raise their children properly, the world will be a better place. Keep up the good job.