Amherst poised to add $1.6M to fully replace middle school roof

AMHERST — Amherst officials appear poised to provide an additional $1.6 million so that the entirety of the Amherst Regional Middle School roof can be replaced this summer.

The Finance Committee on Tuesday, following a discussion and vote by the Town Council the previous night, is recommending that a request from Town Manager Paul Bockelman to use $4.3 million in free cash for road projects be lowered to $2.7 million, allowing more money to be available for the $9.83 million roof project.

While the building’s roof is being supported by the Massachusetts School Building Authority, with a nearly 62% reimbursement, the portion over the auditorium was not considered old enough to qualify for this program. The remaining parts of the roof, including those over the gym, swimming pool, library and classrooms, where tiles have fallen and buckets have been set up, are already scheduled to be done.

The building houses seventh and eighth graders from Amherst, Leverett, Shutesbury and Pelham, and in the fall will be used for the Chestnut Street Academy, Amherst’s sixth-grade program. The Regional School Committee recently asked the Town Council to consider funding the full amount for the auditorium roof.

District 1 Councilor Cathy Schoen, who chairs the Finance Committee, said Amherst would pay the full estimated cost, because timing was off to bring the spending to town meetings in Pelham, Leverett and Shutesbury.

“The urgency of it is to have the money available at the same time as the rest of the project is being done,” Schoen said.

Even if the other towns provided money, that would reduce Amherst’s share to around $1.3 million, Schoen said.

Town Council voted not to require that the other communities provide support, following its own hourlong discussion.

District 2 Councilor Lynn Griesemer said there is no question the auditorium roof is a mess, but she is concerned that the other towns always look for Amherst to bail them out.

“My priorities are for the town of Amherst, for the DPW, for fire and for roads,” Griesemer said. “We keep getting looked at as the rich sister in this configuration.”

Anna Heard, Shutesbury’s representative to the regional school panel, said that Amherst is already benefiting more from hosting the middle school than the other three towns, so it’s not unreasonable to ask for the full amount.

District 1 Councilor Jill Brevik said she understands the region has responsibilities, but a healthier framing would be about the collective role that Amherst can play, and to make sure that capital projects are addressed before they become a crisis.

“It’s a pretty bad situation, it probably shouldn’t have gotten to the point where the ceiling is caving in,” Brevik said.

Brevik said the Town Council can show it is preparing well, aware of issues and create a better baseline in the relationship with the neighboring communities.

District 5 Councilor Ana Devlin Gauthier said she would rather put the bonus money to the roof before it gets worse.

“I believe that whoever can step up should step up,” Devlin Gauthier said.  “And if right now that’s Amherst, then I believe that should be Amherst.”

District 5 Councilor Sam MacLeod said the roof should be seen as a must do.

Still, Bockelman said he worries about pushing responsibilities for the regional school district onto the town.

Finance Director Sean Mangano said the initial plan for investing in roads was $2.3 million short over five years, so taking out $1.6 million means it will be close to $4 million short.

Mangano also notes that this could be setting a precedent when more capital needs are coming up, including the high school roof.

“My hope is the council would make it clear this is a one-time exception, and that the norm is we go through the regional agreement,” Mangano said.

At Tuesday’s Leverett Select Board meeting, Tim Shores, who serves as the town’s representative to the regional school committee, joked that he would make a motion to thank Amherst for its support for the auditorium roof by proposing that the school be renamed the Amherst Amherst-Pelham Regional Middle School.

In oral public comment to the Town Council Monday, there was significant support for Amherst providing the full amount of free cash so the entire roof could be completed.

Lyra Donaldson, a fourth grader at Crocker Farm School, recently played viola in a concert at the auditorium.

“I am glad it was not raining or snowing that night, because it would have gone through the roof like it did when I was in the Lion King with Starlight’s Youth Theater,” Lyra said. “Please fix the ceiling, thank you.”

Ellen Jedrey-Guidera of South Amherst recalled her first visit to the auditorium in 2017, when her family, including her then 4-year-old child, was attending a play. The wave of mold overcame her then, and at a recent concert where her now 12-year-old daughter performed, that odor remains.

“That mold smell is still there, only now it’s stronger,” Jedrey-Guidera said.

Mari Schwartzer, a District 2 resident, said councilors should treat the issue as a matter of health and safety.

“No teacher, no child, staff, parent or faculty member should have to risk their health by just showing up for school or going to an event,” Schwartzer said.

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