schools cannot receive building upgrades and/or major repairs that are needed and we are forced into more reactive maintenance rather than preventative maintenance. Long Range Facility Planning To help guide continued short- and long-term facility planning for NPS, in the spring of 2023, ARPA funds were used to hire a planning and design consultant to conduct a School Facilities and Enrollment Planning Study for the Elementary Schools. While the study initially focused on the Underwood and Ward Elementary Schools, the two oldest schools in the district, it was later expanded to include the six remaining elementary schools that have recently been renovated or replaced. The final Elementary School study report includes space utilization and comparison with space standards, building condition data, and a prioritized ranking for Ward, Underwood, and the other six elementary schools. Following the completion of the Elementary Facilities and Enrollment Planning Study, the district contracted Raymond Design Associates, an architecture and planning firm, to conduct a similar facilities study of the Secondary Schools. To date, the firm has collected space utilization data for the secondary schools, mapped it to MSBA space standards, and is currently working on documenting high level building conditions. Once completed, the data can be integrated with the elementary school data to develop recommendations to address long-term facility and enrollment needs. Currently, the Mayor and his team, working closely with the school department on a feasibility study on the path forward for the Ward and Underwood schools. We expect to know more this summer. Links to individual project web pages can be found at Newton Public Buildings - School Projects. Additional information is also available at Long Range Planning and Building Projects. Sustainability Starting with the NECP project, NPS’ first all-electric building, new mechanical systems in major school building projects are fossil fuel free. The Countryside and Franklin elementary schools’ projects include the first ground-source heat pump (geothermal) mechanical systems in the city. All major school projects are also designed to be ready for solar rooftop and/or parking canopy installations. In addition, new rooftop solar installations at Cabot and Angier, and new solar parking lot canopies at the Education Center, and Wheeler Road lot are completed. These solar projects are being constructed through a Power Purchasing Agreement with Ameresco, and these solar projects are anticipated to be cost neutral for the district. As of FY25, NPS has established a new Green Team Captain leadership stipend; there is currently at least one Green Team Captain at every school, who is focused on supporting sustainability initiatives and a student green team. The first year of these stipends in FY25 is funded through MA DEP grant funds that come through DPW’s Sustainable Materials Management Department; revenue generated by the Helpsy Textile Collection bins located at the schools will fund the stipends in the following years.
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