NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Some 60 people wandered through the halls of Greylock Elementary School last week, many of them sharing memories of their school years there.

 

"It's the last time we'll stand here," said one former student to a classmate as they looked around the old library.

 

Officials are hoping that the nostalgia didn't cloud their vision of the pails under the leaking roof, the cracked walls, the inefficient windows, exposed cables to bring modern tech to classrooms, hampered accessibility and the lack of heating and of air conditioning.

 

"It's a little hot tonight so you're getting the full Greylock effect," said Superintendent Barbara Malkas. 

 

Last Thursday night was the first of two forums being held to inform the public about the Greylock School project for Grades kindergarten through 2. The next will be this Thursday at 6 p.m. at Brayton Elementary School. 

 

Mayor Jennifer Macksey said she was open to other ways of getting information about the project out to the public. 

 

"If you want to host a coffee hour or lemonade hour, we'll be happy to take a show on the road," she said.

 

The 70-year-old Greylock will not reopen this fall because of its failing condition and the Massachusetts School Building Authority has approved a $65 million project to replace it with a new school. 

 

The City Council has passed borrowing for the project but voters will go to the polls on Oct. 8 to decide on a debt exclusion for the city's share of $20 million that will make the new school possible.  

 

"It's one of the biggest investments that you can see, you can touch and you can feel," said Mayor Jennifer Macksey. "Who wants to spend $20 million on water or sewer pipes? It's not a sexy project. This is a project that not only will help our youth, but will help our community."

 

Malkas, TSKP Studios' Jesse Saylor and Tim Alix of owner's project manager Colliers International went through the plans for the new school and the process of the MSBA. A presentation is available here and the session was recorded for broadcast on Northern Berkshire Community Television.

 

They went over aspects of the new school including more natural light and connections to the outdoors, spaces in which to implement the district's educational programming, better security and integrated technology, and a regulation basketball court, stage and other areas that could be isolated from the school at large for use by the community. 

 

Two issues were raised at Thursday's session: taxes and the enrollment. 

 

Resident Joseph Smith questioned the data used to project enrollment over the next 10 years, citing a Berkshire Regional Planning Commission study that estimated a 43 percent drop in students by 2030.

 

"I'm just very concerned about a 40 percent drop," he said. "It really sets the stage for not only are we going to need one school, we'll be paying for Colegrove into the 2040s ... there's not enough kids to support two schools."

 

Malkas cautioned that projections were just that — projections. The BRPC's study had been on data point in the MSBA's calculations she said, and the agency's estimates weren't far off from a third-party study by the school system that was referenced. 

 

"That report was done by the school committee in 2021 used 20 years of data from state and federal agencies to create a 10-year projection," she said. "We are seeing a very gradual decline over time."

 

The numbers for kindergarten through Grade 6 are leveling off, Malkas said, and what is important to not is that two schools are needed for the 625 students in those grades as well as the 91 children in preschool. 

 

"I'm still not seeing a justification that we will have enough students by he time we pay off these loans," said Smith, then referred to some of the piecemeal work done to keep Clarksburg School open. "Are we going to have the money to maintain two schools or just hobble along with Brayton until we don't need it anymore?"

 

School officials say Brayton also needs significant and costly repairs, including a mold issue in the basement. Estimates are $45 million to address all of the problems, which would not be reimbursed by the MSBA. 

 

Two teachers at the meeting said the condition of the buildings affect the individuals in them and the learning environment. 

 

"I don't know officially how much of that would need to be done by 2035 but having worked there for 15 years, I see a lot of it needs to be done and soon," said a woman who identified herself as a Brayton teacher. "So I don't know that the exact number comparison, but I do know that we have to keep that in mind that we have to pay 100 percent of Brayton renovations versus the 30 percent."

 

Michele Casey spoke of the difficulties working in Greylock. 

 

"We're doing constant, ongoing assessments of the kids. When you have to do that in the hallway with a parade of students walking up and down the hall, it just it doesn't give you an accurate picture of what your student may or may not know," she said. "The building really does impact what we can and cannot do. I know that jobs in the Berkshires are not booming.  ... 

 

However, a new school could make the difference between families deciding to live in North Adams or Adams or Savoy or one of the even Cheshire. You know, it could draw people to the area." 

 

The concept of the school as an economic development investment that could attract families was echoed by several others in the group. City Councilor Peter Breen noted future jobs at the reopened hospital and large infrastructure projects like the flood control chutes. 

 

"We can either limp along with what we have or invest in something that will attract people into town," said one resident.

 

City Council President Bryan Sapienza and Andrew Fitch also expressed strong support for the project.

 

"If kids are our future they should have the best schools, they should have the best of everything," said resident Gail Grandchamp. "This is a great thing."

 

The mayor said the developers she's spoken with have reacted positively to the project. "It's a decision that we're making today, the impact will be gradual, and it's an impact that's going to sustain us for the next 30 to 50 years."

 

The city would be responsible for $19.6 million, of which $1 million is estimated for the demolition of Greylock. The MSBA is paying for 80 percent of eligible costs.

 

Of the nine elementary schools in the pipeline, Greylock is the lowest in cost at $699 per square foot while the highest is Stoughton at $907.

 

The new school is also in line for a federal grant for a geothermal system at $3.6 million and officials says the cost to operate the school will be significantly — about $60,000 a year compared to $170,000.

 

The impact on the taxpayers would be highest in the third or fourth year, at $270 on an average single-family home valued at $206,000.

 

"It's been a good institution for many of you here but we have to have a good institution for the next generation," said the mayor.