BY ADAM SWIFT
PEABODY — Peabody Veterans Memorial High School may look a little tired compared to the new Higgins Middle School that will open in September.
But improvements planned for the 43-year-old high school next year are guaranteed to spruce up the three-level complex and grounds.
Funded as part of a $3.7 million capital bond for city and school projects approved by the City Council, there will be renovations to the auditorium, a new softball field and improvements to the baseball field at Emerson Park.
“I think the high school is what it is, but we can do some improvements at the auditorium, gym and playing fields to put some shine on it,” said Councilor-at-Large Thomas Gould.
Included in the bond is $550,000 for new seating, carpeting and lighting at the high school auditorium.
Councilor-at-Large David Gravel said the upgrades at the auditorium are needed.
“We got our useful life when we bought refurbished seats, but it’s time,” he said.
The $325,000 designated for high school fields includes a new softball field on campus and improvements to the nearby Emerson Park field used by the freshmen and junior varsity baseball teams.
“The girls varsity softball team plays off campus at the Kiley School,” said Mayor Edward A. Bettencourt Jr. “I’d love to have them play on campus.”
Plans are also in the works for a new roof for more than half the high school.
Bettencourt said he will likely be coming forward with a capital bond request late this year or early next year to fund the new roof.
Work on the design and final budget figures are underway. Bettencourt estimated that the project will come in at around $3 million, with the Massachusetts School Building Authority reimbursing the city for 55 percent, or $1.65 million of the cost.
Adam Swift can be reached at aswift @ItemLive.com.