BERKLEY — Voters approved a new Berkley Community School building at their town meeting on Thursday, Nov 14.
The town meeting vote was the second required vote for the project. Voters also approved a Proposition 2 1/2 debt exclusion to fund the project via a ballot question in the Nov. 5, 2024, Presidential Election.
“We are thrilled,” Berkley Superintendent Melissa Ryan told the Gazette after the Nov. 14 town meeting. “I am overwhelmed by the community response. The members of the community that spoke from their hearts about our teachers and staff was inspiring and reaffirms the work we are doing. The 2/3 vote passed by a landslide.”
The measure needed a two-thirds margin to pass and was approved with an overwhelming majority, Ryan said.
How much will property taxes go up by?
The debt exclusion for the project will raise the amount the average homeowner pays in taxes in Berkley by about $1,250 a year, assuming an average home value of about $500,000, Ryan said.
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What are the next steps, now that a new building has been approved?
Ryan said that the next steps for the project include “a year of design work.”
“During this phase, we will refine the design images shared during the feasibility study and bring the details of classrooms and community spaces to life,” Ryan said.
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Ryan said that after the “design phase,” construction would begin, and that the new building has “a target opening date of 2027.”
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Why new school is needed
Ryan previously told the Gazette the 62 year old building is plagued with leaks and water damage.
“You can stand outside and look down the road, and you can see that the road is higher than the building,” Ryan said in October. “What that means is all of the water when it rains flows towards the building, and there isn’t any repair that is going to fix that structural problem.”
