Voters will decide two debt exclusion overrides in the town’s June 10 election that together would add $117 a year, for 20 years, to the tax bill for the median-priced home in Marblehead.
High School roof project
On May 6, Town Meeting voters approved, 804-282, an $8.6 million debt exclusion override for a roof project at Marblehead High School.
In 2022, Town Meeting approved $5.6 million to repair the leaky roof, but the project was never started. Since then, the scope of the project has expanded to include HVAC units that are at or near the end of their useful life, according to the project manager. The School Committee’s facilities subcommittee is still deciding the best approach to fixing the roof, either repairing, recovering or replacing it.
If approved at the ballot box in June, the roof project is expected to begin in the summer of 2026. It would add $68 a year for the next 20 years to the tax bill for the median-priced home.
At Town Meeting, several MHS students spoke passionately about the need to fix the roof.
“If you’re voting against the new roof, you’re voting against the health and safety of Marblehead High School students,” said senior Clive Connolly. “We need a new roof. It’s not OK that there is damp and wetness in these rooms. That mold is terrible for you. It’s one of the worst things you can be exposed to.”
Senior Dante Genovesi agreed, “We’re past the point of needing a new roof. I’ve had water drip on me. I’m a drama kid, and there’s been water dripping right past super expensive lighting equipment” in the auditorium.
He added, “It smells like sewage in there.”
MHS science teacher Joe King described his working conditions.
“Two weeks ago, I was teaching around a barrel in my room as water was falling down,” King said. “Two months ago, water destroyed a $5,000 smart board in another science room. We need to get this done.”
Several adults criticized the handling of the project and rejected the idea that the HVAC units need to be replaced while addressing the roof.
“We’re all agreed that the roof needs to be fixed,” said Seamus Hourihan. “There are two issues here: fixing the roof and replacing the HVAC units. The money exists to do the roof, since May of 2022. It should’ve been done 18 months ago, except for the negligence of the School Committee.”
Sam Altruder, who manages properties, said, “This proposed $8 million expenditure for HVAC equipment runs counter to my experience. We never, ever accelerated the replacement of HVAC equipment because of roof replacement… The underlying arguments for HVAC replacement just don’t hold water.”
Mary Alley makeover
Next, Town Meeting approved, 671-103, a $5.75 million renovation for Mary Alley.
The project includes “windows, Americans with Disabilities Act bathrooms and railings, elevator and HVAC systems and acquiring and installing a new roof,” according to the town’s presentation.
“A lot of people, including myself, use space heaters because the HVAC heat does not work,” said Finance Director Aleesha Benjamin. “We also, I just found out, don’t have a sprinkler system, which is even more frightening in our building. I know from working there, there are many, many updates that need to be done.”
The Mary Alley project, which would add $49 a year to the tax bill for the median-priced home, for the next 20 years.
Benjamin emphasized that the debt for the MHS construction project 20 years ago is finally paid off, so even with these two new projects, tax bills for the median-priced home should drop $5 a year.
Editor Leigh Blander is an experienced TV, radio and print journalist.
