Easton' Early Elementary School Vote: What You Need To Know

EASTON, MA — The project to construct a new Easton Early Elementary School took a step forward last week when voters approved the town's authority to borrow money for the new school, during a Special Town Meeting. The second vote will take place Tuesday, Nov. 5 — voters' support to raise taxes for the project is still required before the project can go forward. The new school would address facility issues at Easton's three elementary schools and provide education for students pre-kindergarten through second grade.

According to school officials, the new school would be made possible through the Massachusetts School Building Authority grant program, which could reimburse the school district up to $36 million for the project. The school district's portion of the cost would be approximately $59 million, according to current estimates.

For a home assessed at $400,000, it is estimated that the project would raise the homeowner's annual tax rate by $28 in the year 2021 and by $144 the year after that, according to the town's tax impact calculator. The tax rate for that home would then go up by $228 in the year 2023 and by $360 in the following year. Between the years of 2025 and 2050, the tax rate impact would be $428 annually for a $400,000 home, according to the town's estimates.

During last week's Special Town Meeting, voters approved to authorize borrowing of funds for the project, but a second vote on Tuesday is still required before the project can move ahead. Tuesday's vote will be whether to authorize the town to raise the tax rate by the amount necessary to pay for the borrowing. If the voters say "no," the project would not be able to move forward as planned.

School officials say that if voters turn the proposal down at the vote on Tuesday, the project will likely lose the possibility of funding reimbursement, and it could push the project out to 2030s.

Superintendent Lisha Cabral has said that the district's three elementary schools have aging facilities, and it would cost more to rehabilitate those schools than to build a new early elementary school. The three current schools present traffic issues and have failing infrastructure, she has said.

The new Early Elementary School would be a state-of-the-art facility that would provide young learners with 21st-century education for decades to come, Cabral has said.

She also said the new school could be used as a community gathering space.

Tuesday's voting will take place from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Oliver Ames High School auditorium.