Hastings Elementary roof failed in storm; town approves $4.14M borrowing for full replacement
March 23, 2024 | Town of Westborough, Worcester County, Massachusetts
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Westborough town meeting voted to borrow $4,142,800 for a full replacement of the Hastings Elementary School roof after administrators described a sequence of leaks and structural failures during winter storms.
Superintendent Amber Bach said an extensive PVC roof system that covers roughly the high‑school‑sized footprint failed in January when combined rain and snow overwhelmed degraded membranes and flashing. School staff and firefighters performed emergency response and temporary repairs; interior damage was covered by insurance, she said, but the roof’s condition required decisive action.
The school district issued engineered bid documents and received three contractor bids; the low bidder’s construction estimate for replacement was about $3.76 million, with the total appropriation including an owner’s project manager (OPM) and contingencies raising the request to $4.14 million. School Committee Chair Steve Durette told the meeting the bid package was assembled under prevailing‑wage rules and that the low bid is the result of that public process.
Critics on the floor questioned square‑footage calculations and cost per square foot. Supporters and town finance officials noted the emergency nature of the work and that delaying the project risks additional interior damage, instructional disruption and higher long‑term costs. The borrowing motion passed by more than the two‑thirds margin required for debt authorization (306‑21).
The district plans to award the contract after town meeting, hire an OPM, and complete work once school is out in summer 2024.
Sources: Superintendent Amber Bach; School Committee Chair Steve Durette; town meeting votes.
Superintendent Amber Bach said an extensive PVC roof system that covers roughly the high‑school‑sized footprint failed in January when combined rain and snow overwhelmed degraded membranes and flashing. School staff and firefighters performed emergency response and temporary repairs; interior damage was covered by insurance, she said, but the roof’s condition required decisive action.
The school district issued engineered bid documents and received three contractor bids; the low bidder’s construction estimate for replacement was about $3.76 million, with the total appropriation including an owner’s project manager (OPM) and contingencies raising the request to $4.14 million. School Committee Chair Steve Durette told the meeting the bid package was assembled under prevailing‑wage rules and that the low bid is the result of that public process.
Critics on the floor questioned square‑footage calculations and cost per square foot. Supporters and town finance officials noted the emergency nature of the work and that delaying the project risks additional interior damage, instructional disruption and higher long‑term costs. The borrowing motion passed by more than the two‑thirds margin required for debt authorization (306‑21).
The district plans to award the contract after town meeting, hire an OPM, and complete work once school is out in summer 2024.
Sources: Superintendent Amber Bach; School Committee Chair Steve Durette; town meeting votes.
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