By BRIDGET TURCOTTE
SAUGUS — Today, voters will be asked to support a $186 million investment in Saugus Public Schools in a special election.
The price tag includes $160 million for a proposed grades 6-12 combination middle and high school and a $25 million district-wide master plan that would restructure the district to include an upper elementary school for grades 3-5 at the existing Belmonte Middle School and a lower elementary school for Pre-K through grade 2 at the Veterans Memorial Elementary School.
The master plan is a town project and is not being pursued through the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA). The town’s share of the total project would be an estimated $118 million, bonded over a 30-year period.
The MSBA will reimburse the town at a minimum rate of 53 percent — which is expected to increase — of eligible approved project costs for the middle-high school.
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., according to the Town Clerk’s office.
Precinct | Polling Place | Polling Place Address |
1 | American Legion Hall | Taylor Street |
2 | Veteran’s School | Hurd Avenue |
3 | Hammersmith Nursing Home | Chestnut Street |
4 | Belmonte Middle School | Dow Street |
5 | Lynnhurst School | Elm Street |
6 | Veteran’s School | Hurd Avenue |
7 | Knights of Columbus | 1 K of C Drive |
8 | Belmonte Middle School | Dow Street |
9 | Oaklandvale School | Main Street |
10 | Italian American Club | 1 Beachview Avenue |
A fact sheet provided by Town Manager Scott Crabtree details the cost to residents with average home value assessments. According to The Warren Group, in March, the median home value in Saugus was $374,950.
At $375,000, the cost would be $76 in 2018, $118 in 2019, and would continue gradually increasing until reaching $541 in 2024. The cost would then begin to gradually decline.
If the vote is successful, Crabtree said he will request a Special Town Meeting and submit an article to be voted by Town Meeting that will double the tax exemption for eligible seniors, veterans, and other taxpayers to assist with taxes associated with the investment in the proposed middle-high school district-wide master plan solution.
Bridget Turcotte can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @BridgetTurcotte