Concord School District -

The Board of Education held several meetings during the month of June to review cost estimates for the project and gain public feedback.

• The new school is being designed to support the middle school team model and has three “team clusters” per grade where students will attend their core academic classes. The design currently includes a 9,000-sf gymnasium, a 5,000-sf multipurpose athletic space, a 450-seat auditorium and three athletic fields. The building will be universally accessible and feature an interior ramp connecting the first and second floor and two large elevators. Sustainability features include a high-performance envelope, compact footprint, rooftop solar panels and geothermal heating and cooling.

• The Board will meet on Monday, July 15 at 5:30pm to hold a public hearing and to set a cap on the cost. Once the cap is set, the architects will further develop the cost during the design process.

Frequently Asked Questions

During the month of June, the Concord School District and Board of Education held several meetings to gain feedback on the proposed design of the new middle school. The most frequently asked questions are answered below.

Timeline

The Board has been working through the many steps of building a new middle school since 2015. The project timeline has been stretched by the state’s pause on building aid and COVID. In 2022, the district was one of 17 communities to be approved for building aid, behind Rochester, Monadnock and Colebrook. The district is now #2 on the list to receive building aid and will learn the amount at the end of June 2025. The plan is to be shovel ready and start as soon as the funding is awarded. Rundlett was originally built in 1957 and is at the end of its useful life, making this project urgent.

Location

There are two different parcels of land in the city named Broken Ground.

• The “Broken Ground” area referenced in the City Master Plan occupies about 5 square miles of land west of the PSNH transmission lines, extends to the Loudon town line and includes Turtle Pond.

• The Broken Ground school site is a separate and distinct parcel that sits to the west of “Broken Ground” and falls within the urban growth boundary of the city.

The Board evaluated building a new school at the Rundlett location or at the Broken Ground site. The current location of Rundlett has limited space for buses, vehicle traffic and for fields. Building a new building at the Rundlett site would take approximately 18 months longer, creating disruption to elementary and middle school students as well as costing an additional $5.2M.

In December 2023, the Board selected the Broken Ground property for the site of the new middle school. Board members cited the opportunity for all Concord students, lower cost and the disruption on student learning during construction as reasons for selecting the location. With growth in housing on the east side of the city, the Broken Ground location allows for expansion if it ever becomes necessary.

Student Experience

The Broken Ground location is an opportunity for all Concord students to attend school for three years in a wooded environment next to 121 acres of city-owned conservation land. The students that live on the east side of Concord will attend a school in their own back yard and experience a “city” environment for high school. Students who live on the south side will have an entirely new experience. The Broken Ground location provides space for outdoor activities that are not possible because of the compact nature of the current middle school location.

Traffic & Walkability

Traffic is a concern at all schools, especially during start and end times. Preliminary traffic studies were conducted at Rundlett Middle School and Broken Ground in 2023. At Rundlett, there is limited space for bus traffic and parent drop off, with an additional safety issue of students walking between cars. It is a challenge to define the number of walkers due to students being dropped off near the school, but it estimated that 40-70 students walk to school.

An additional traffic study is currently being conducted at Broken Ground in consultation with the City of Concord. The intersection of Route 393 and East Side Drive is under state jurisdiction and is currently being assessed by the state in conjunction with a bridge replacement project.

The Board will create a Traffic Working Group once the traffic study is completed and invite community members to join.

Water Pressure

Improving the water pressure in the Broken Ground area has been part of the City of Concord’s Capital Improvement since 2017. The design has been approved as part of the city’s budget for 2025, with implementation planned for 2026.

Cost

The current total estimate project cost is estimated at $136,234,826 - $166,666,549. The higher estimate includes all items that were requested during the visioning sessions.

Estimated Tax Impact - $32-207

The estimated tax impact of this project is $32-207 in the first year, based on a property assessed at $350,000. This estimate includes state building aid and the use of the district’s Facilities Trust Fund.

Sustainability

The project is being designed based on the priorities of the Sustainability Working Group:

• Minimize impacts to the environment

• Design for student and staff health and wellbeing

• Be resilient to future weather conditions

• Create an environment where students and the community benefit from connections to nature

The Future of Rundlett

While many ideas have been floated for the future of the Rundlett site, no discussions have happened. The Board will establish a working group including community members and diverse stakeholders to explore future options and make recommendations to the full Board.

Project Timeline

Middle School Project webpage: https://www.sau8.org/page/middle-school-project

This page includes the school building aid application, the project timeline, the full 2022 Preliminary Design Study and documents, reports and presentations by year.

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Updates are sent via the district’s ParentSquare app. Share this with anyone that would be interested: Join Community Groups and select “Middle School Project.” No phone number is necessary.