Watertown Middle School will be the next major project constructed by the City of Watertown. Tuesday night, the City Council voted to move the school to the top of the Capital Projects list. One of the primary reasons was to take advantage of the cost savings provided by using the modular classes set up on Moxley Field for students while the school is under construction.
The City Council held a special meeting after City Manager George Proakis asked Councilors said a decision must be made about when to take on the middle school project because the modular classrooms currently serving as the temporary Watertown High School will be removed in 2026 unless the City extends the lease.
The Middle School is not the only project on the list of priorities. Proakis said other projects on the Capital Investment Plan that do not currently have funding include replacing the Senior Center and possibly adding a Recreation facility, building a new East End Fire Station, finding a staging area for Department of Public Works projects, and implementing the Watertown Square Plan.
The plan presented by Proakis calls for knocking down and replacing the original portion of the school built in 1922 and renovating and modernizing the portion constructed in 1998.
The City’s current Capital Investment Plan includes $10 million over the next five years to do repairs and other projects to keep the Middle School running.
Superintendent Dede Galdston said that the 1922 portion of the school, which makes up about 70 percent of the school, does not have spaces for small group learning
“Sure, there are a lot of things wrong with the building, but for me it is more about the educational experience,” Galdston said.
The original part of the school was to be a junior high school, which is designed more like a high school. The layout of the 1998 area allows for middle school teaching, with four rooms clustered around an area where students can gather for group learning.
Galdston added that Watertown has rebuilt or renovated all three elementary schools, and the new high school is scheduled to open in 2026.
“(At the elementary schools) There are spaces for students to come together to work and learn. At Hosmer the spaces are always full of students working together,” Galdston said. “In the Middle School classrooms there are no places to go, no place to go in the hallways — it is too narrow. Even the library does not work. It is too noisy.”
Charlie Breitrose
The 1922 section of Watertown Middle School will be torn down under a scenario backed by the City Council. 
Proakis got estimates from the City’s architectural consultant for multiple options, but the partial rebuild and renovation was the most cost effective. A full teardown and rebuild would cost $132 million, while the City would have to spend $76.7 million to do basic repairs and upgrades to meet building codes. To do a gut renovation and modernization would run $127.8 million. Another option would be renovating the 1922 portion of the school, and do basic renovations to the rest of the school for $12o.7 million.
The City has enough borrowing capacity to do the Middle School project without having to add to the taxes with a Proposition 2 1/2 debt exclusion, Prokis said.
Council Discussion
Councilor Vincent Piccirilli said that in 2016 the City commissioned a study of school facilities which recommended two tracks for modernizing Watertown’s schools, with one track replacing the three elementary schools, and the second track was to get MSBA funding for the high school project and when that is finished move on to the middle school.
“We have done the first part and we are well on our way with the high school,” Piccirilli said. “We had no plans up to this point for what to do with the middle school.”
He added that the City is spending money just to keep the current building going, and there is an opportunity to use the modulars for swing space, which would save money.
Councilor John Airasian agreed that now was the time to address the middle school.
“I want to make it fair for our students. They have a great experience in elementary school and soon at the high school, and for us to have a void at the middle school level is not right,” Airasian said.
Councilor Tony Palomba noted one of the arguments for doing the middle school now is the cost of the project will rise in the future, but that could be said for all the projects.
“I am not convinced this is the best way to do this. Any project that is delayed will cost more,” Palomba said. “I think it might be time to give it to other priorities. This will push other projects back. We have spent a lot of money, borrowed a lot of money. It is time to spend money on other projects.”
Councilor Emily Izzo asked if there is a possibility of getting state funding from the Mass. School Building Authority (MSBA) for the middle school, like the high school project. City Council President Mark Sideris, who chairs the School Building Committee, said that the MSBA is unlikely to fund another project in Watertown when many other communities have not had any MSBA projects.
Councilor Caroline Bays asked whether taking on another major project would lower the City’s bond rating, which is the highest at AAA. Chief Financial Officer Ari Sky said the rating should be fine as long as the City pays off the current borrowing and maintains the same level of financial reserves.
The City Council approved making the Middle School project a high priority for the five year Capital Improvement Plan with a vote of 8-1, with Palomba voting no.
The Council also voted unanimously to put the other four projects — the Senior Center/Recreation facility, East End Fire Station, the DPW staging area, and implementing the Watertown Square Plan — onto the Capital Improvement Plan.
Are treating. Down. The middle school. Next to rebuild.
This was a no brainer. The WMS has been an eyesore and has needed band-aid after band-aid to keep it barely functioning. Take full advantage of the modular units across the street while you can and there will be only minor disruption due to its proximity to the current facility. Bravo to the city for thinking ahead.
This is great news. Our kids deserve the best we can give them.