Committee backs $3.5M modular classroom plan
The North Reading School Committee voted 5-0 to recommend a $3.5 million debt exclusion for replacing modular classrooms at the Hood and Little elementary schools. Chair Jeff Friedman and Superintendent Patrick C.
School Committee · Meeting of September 28, 2026
NORTH READING — The North Reading School Committee voted 5-0 to recommend a $3.5 million debt exclusion for replacing modular classrooms at the Hood and Little elementary schools. Chair Jeff Friedman and Superintendent Patrick C. Daly said the plan would cost the average $883,502 home about $52.96 a year over a 15-year bond, far less than a full Massachusetts School Building Authority renovation that could have run into tens of millions.
The measure needs a two-thirds vote at the October 5 town meeting and a simple majority on a November ballot question; the Select Board already recommended it unanimously. The committee also adopted its fiscal 2028 budget calendar and goals 5-0, explicitly flagging "the potential for approval of a proposition two and a half operating budget override." A resident urged officials to keep "communicating... this is a bad, bad situation," prompting Friedman's reply that the district does not want the modular request and any future override "to go together."
In the full story:
- Who Was There
- Organizations And Documents Referenced
- The complete report — 2,969 words
Source: the School Committee meeting of September 28, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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