More than 2,700 city residents cast ballots in the hotly debated vote, which only passed by a margin of around 136.
“The passing of the vote last night means that we can continue on with our process to build a new school at Greylock, the facility formerly known as Greylock Elementary,” said Mayor Jennifer Macksey.
The total cost of the project is over $65 million.
“This allows us to start moving forward with building out construction documents and putting the project out to bid," Macksey continued. "So, this is a reality check that North Adams certainly supports education. I know some of the critics say that it was only 136 votes, but a vote, a win is a win. And we're very excited about this project, and we really feel this will launch us not only in the right direction for education, but will also help our community as an economic development tool, as we’ll attract new families and businesses to the area, as well as, once we get a successful bid, hopefully employ a lot of local vendors and building of the school.”
Critics of the plan include Joseph Smith, who chaired a group advocating for residents to reject the plan as an excessive financial burden on the city’s most vulnerable. He read a statement to WAMC about the vote.
“All that I would ask of the community is to spend some time thinking about why this vote was so close, that it spends some time pondering how it will deal with becoming a more expensive place to live with a significant population living in poverty and on fixed incomes," read Smith. "I hope people think of that which is often taken for granted, such as how having one polling station within the city due to its population decline over the years favors people of means who have cars, how it favors those who are younger and better health. The kindness of the community is best measured by how it thinks of protecting its most vulnerable members. No one wants to be priced out of their hometown after living in it for a lifetime, but this is now on the horizon for many. Lastly, I will hope that the community spends a bit more time considering why our school rating for our district is what it is, and that it does not rest on the idea that a new school building will be what solely fixes that.”
Macksey says those protesting that North Adams could better spend the money on other pressing needs are missing the point, and that grant money on the table for a new school would disappear if the city doesn’t use it.
“This money can only be spent for the rebuild of Greylock Elementary School," she told WAMC. "I can't use the $42 million from the state of Massachusetts to build a new public safety building or infrastructure. This money was is given to us specifically for this project. The thought that this money could be used to increase salaries for teachers is ludicrous. That's not what this money is given to us for. It's granted to us for a new build of Greylock Elementary School. And for those of them that worry about their taxes, I get that that's a legitimate concern, but as we navigate this, we are always certainly willing to work with those who struggle. So, they just need to come in and see our treasurer, tax collector.”
With the vote behind her, Macksey is looking ahead to next steps.
“We will reconvene with the school building committee and start working with our design team to tightening up the construction documents," said the mayor. "So, six months to a year, we'll be out to bid, and then hire a contractor, a general contractor, and start building with the goal of opening a brand-new school in September of 2027.”
North Adams shuttered the decrepit Greylock School earlier this year and reorganized its districtwide grade structure to distribute its students to other schools.
