By Amanda Estes

Staff Writer

“We really got killed.”

South Portland School Department Director of Buildings and Grounds Dave
Brochu summed up the sentiments of the Secondary Schools Facilities
Committee (SSFC) members following the overwhelming defeat of the $56
million bond referendum that would have funded additions and
renovations to the city’s high school.

In a municipal election with 6,489 residents casting ballots, or 35
percent voter turnout, the referendum failed by a margin of 3,162 votes.

“It’s very frustrating for people to say they voted against it for a
reason we had gone over ad nauseam,” said committee member Ralph Cabana
during a Nov. 8 SSFC meeting.

The committee was formed in 2004 to assess the state of the city’s two middle schools and high school.

Cabana and other committee members said from their discussions with
residents, the consensus seemed to be the project  was too
expensive and aspects of the plan such as the construction of an
artificial turf athletic field and another gymnasium were seen as
“frills.”

As they tried to inform residents about the project, Cabana said school
officials and SSFC members were vilified and subjected to personal
attacks.

“The vindictiveness of this all surprised me more than the margin of
defeat,” he said. “I’ve lived in this community for over 20 years and
I’ve never seen this and I never thought I would see this.”

The committee met two days after the election to reflect on the vote
and determine their next step with the project. The group is planning
to host a televised public forum on Dec. 6, which will follow the
installation of three new members to the school board. Members stressed
the need for participation from residents, school board members and
city officials.

Several members said throughout the process they felt isolated from city officials.

“We all should be working together,” said SSFC member and Mahoney
Middle School Principal Kathryn Germani. “The money’s all coming from
the same set of pockets.”

Six out of eight residents who spoke during the meeting said they voted
against the bond because $56 million was too much. Nine residents
attended the meeting.

“This was the biggest farce you people have ever put in front of us,” said Dick Campbell. “It was too damn high.”

Paul Connolly said he voted no, but praised the committee’s efforts.

“As a committee, you people have done a fine job,” he said. “I don’t think there was anything you people did that was wrong.”

Connolly said it was the responsibility of the school board and the
city council to promote the project and develop funding mechanisms.

Resident Renee Salafia also said the school board and the city council
need to be more involved with the project. Salafia voted in favor of
the bond and said after some 50 years of putting “band-aids” on the
problem, the school may have to “go down the tubes” before anything is
done to rehabilitate the building.

The $56 million bond would have carried roughly $29.4 million in
interest payments and cost the average taxpayer close to $5,180 over
the more than 20-year life of the bond, according to estimates by the
city’s finance director Rob Coombs.

As proposed, the plans called for the construction of a three-story
addition for science classrooms and a new library, a three-floor
classroom and administration wing, a two-story addition for a new
cafeteria and kitchen, a two-story classroom addition on the Highland
Avenue side of the building and a single-story gymnasium. The plans
also proposed relocating the existing tennis courts and the
construction of a multipurpose artificial turf field.

Even though the referendum failed, several building and site problems
will still need to be addressed including mechanical, electrical and
life safety system updates, asbestos abatement, ADA compliance and
Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) stormwater
management regulations, school officials say.

Dan Cecil of Harriman Architects said if the city were to just address
the basic building problems such as system upgrades and ADA compliance,
the total project cost would be roughly $30 million. Cecil said that
process would likely require 40 trailers or temporary classrooms for a
two-year period. SSFC members expressed concerns that renovations done
in the near future could one day be “undone” if voters do accept a high
school project.  

 Superintendent Suzanne Godin recommended the committee enter a
holding pattern and not rush into developing a new plan right away.
With a new school board facing consolidation mandates for the next
budget cycle, Godin warned the school department’s resources will be
stretched thin. This year, all Maine school districts will be required
to send their budgets to a referendum within 10 days of receiving city
council approval.

Godin said the state has directed South Portland to reduce its school
facilities and operations budget by $1.7 million in 2009. As oil and
fuel prices reach record highs, the district will also have to reduce
its transportation budget by $201,000; reduce system administration
costs by $259,000 and reduce funds for the special education program –
the only area in which the district receives funding – by $1.8 million.


In less than a year, officials from the accrediting body, New England
Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), will visit South Portland.
Godin said the presence of mold, asbestos and ADA deficiencies can be a
threat to accreditation.

“This is really not about anything, but the kids and lack of
accreditation hurts the kids,” said committee member and city councilor
Ralph Baxter, Sr.

Before developing a new plan for the high school, Godin suggested
broadening the representation on the SSFC to include more viewpoints.
While the committee will seek to survey residents in the near future
about why they rejected the referendum, Godin recommended the committee
hold off on work to the project’s plans until early spring.