The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Hinsdale School renovation considered
Committee interviewing architects for $2.9 million project
WINCHESTER — In the 18 months since the Mary P. Hinsdale Elementary School was closed, a group of residents, elected officials and construction experts have worked toward a plan to reopen the building and resume classes by fall 2019.
One of the most critical steps in the process begins this week when architectural firms that bid on the project will be interviewed by members of the Hinsdale Renovation Project Committee.
Five firms were chosen for interviews, Winchester Superintendent of Schools Melony M. Brady-Shanley said in an email. She noted that six firms were asked to clarify questions from the committee, and once that occurred, interviews with all but one of the responding firms were scheduled.
The first round of interviews will be held beginning at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. The committee will conduct the interviews in succession with three firms: Friar Architecture of Farmington, Perkins Eastman of Stamford and QA+M Architecture, also of Farmington.
Interviews will resume Monday with two more firms: Sevigny Architects of Hartford, and Silver, Petrucelli & Associates Inc. of Hamden.
The total projected cost for the renovation project is $2.9 million, with the potential for state construction grants of $1.3 million for Phase 1, and about $933,000 for Phase 2.
The cost to update Hinsdale school is far less than the cost of building a new school, according to the facilities ad hoc committee, which was formed in 2017. It estimated that a new school building would cost up to $60 million and take as long as 10 years to build.
Facilities committee member Peter Marchand said its members compiled the original study based on what type of repairs were needed for both Hinsdale and Batcheller Early Childhood Center.
“Both schools were neglected for a number of years,” Marchand said.
He noted that the committee met with parents and talked about which school would provide the best learning environment.
Responses showed that Hinsdale was thought to be a better choice. “It was considered safer than Batcheller,” Marchand said. Hinsdale is also close to other schools, the committee noted, and is an easy walk from homes in the neighborhood.
Engineering reports also showed that a proposal to upgrade Batcheller school would be more expensive,
coming in at about $3.5 million with the potential for about $1.7 million in grants.
Once the ad hoc committee submitted its report to the Board of Selectmen, its members suggested that a formal town committee be formed to oversee the next phase of the project. The result was the formation of the renovation committee, which began its work in July.
Before renovations can begin, however, the school district will continue to “gather accurate costs, projections, and a scope of work that would be reliable,” Brady-Shanley wrote.
She expects a special referendum will be called in late winter to allow residents to vote on whether they support issuing bonds to help pay for the project.
If the referendum were approved, the school would have an enrollment of about 300 students in pre-K to second grade, Brady-Shanley noted.