Fuller Farley Buildng

FULLER – FARLEY BUILDNG PRE-FEASIBILITY STUDY QUESTIONS & ANSWERS 1. What was the request of Town Meeting and what was it based on? a. To fund a pre-feasibility study of the Fuller Middle School and Farley School Buildings. b. The request was made due to concerns of the condition of Fuller Middle School building structure and mechanical and their decreasing life- span as well as the conditions at Farley School that would need to be addressed in order to reoccupy it as a public school after Mass Bay’s 10 years of occupancy. c. It was originally the School Department’s belief that, without architectural and engineering support in hand, that the infrastructure of Fuller was in severe decline, and that Farley School would need some renovation as well as a new roof over the pool, with a significant amount of repair to bring that area into use by a school, possibly as a cafetorium. d. Mass Bay Community College currently leases Farley School and has no interest in remaining in that facility. It will revert to a school use. e. The original lease will expire in 2013; however, the lease will be extended by the School Committee for one additional year in order to allow both MassBay and the School Committee time to consider their options. Therefore our first inclination was to vacate Fuller and occupy Farley due to a lesser cost.

2. Who performed the study? a. The architectural firm of Bargmann Hendrie Archetype, Inc. (bh+a), the firm that has recently done work for us at Stapleton School (door and window replacement project).

3. Has the original plan for these two buildings changed? a. Yes. b. As a result of Town Meeting’s approval to fund the study, we have been able to learn that some of the Fuller School building core is salvageable. c. In addition, a demographic study, performed by New England School Development Council (NESDEC) and commissioned by the Framingham School Committee, indicates stable enrollment, but significant shifting with increased enrollment at the elementary level.  Current Enrollments:  Kindergarten – Grade 5: 4326  NESDEC Projections:  2013-2014 Kindergarten – Grade 5: 4319  2014-2015 Kindergarten – Grade 5: 4354

1 | P a g e  2015-2016 Kindergarten – Grade 5: 4356 Although the numbers show little to moderate growth over current enrollment, the building cannot accommodate that type of sustained population based on current curriculum requirements. d. As the elementary level rises through the grades, it will bubble at the middle school level starting in 2017 (current first grade class.) e. No issues would arise as a result of increased enrollments when they read the High School grades. 4. Were options developed for Fuller Middle School as a result of the pre- feasibility study? a. Three options were developed. All options assume that part of the existing building structure will be retained (auditorium, gymnasium and cafetorium) i. Option A – Renovate the existing Fuller Middle School 1. Assumes phased construction project 2. No temporary facility to house students while construction is underway. 3. Estimated cost: $47,422,202 ii. Option B – Partial New Construction 1. Move students to a multi-level type of construction 2. More parking and athletic fields 3. Possible move of bus yard from Park & Recreation land and discontinue lease of CSX property 4. Building would be separated at Buildings and Grounds wing 5. Estimated cost: $35,535,462 iii. Option C – Partial demo/partial renovation – Keep cafeteria/gym/auditorium 1. 120,000 square foot footprint 2. Classrooms to be the correct size (Fuller originally built as High School and Middle School does follow same classroom model.) 3. Estimated cost: $33,047,800 b. Total replacement of the existing building, 200,000 square feet multiplied by $350/per square foot is $70,000,000. c. To replace a building, allowed under MSBA standards, would be roughly half the size and therefore, half the cost. d. Although not optimum, the School Department could occupy Farley without any renovations while the Fuller facility was being renovated. Renovations to Farley would not be reimbursable by the MSBA because the MSBA does not pay for temporary student housing. The cost to renovate Farley, to use as temporary housing, would need to be born, 100%, by the Town. FPS could relocate students to Farley, without renovation, while renovations are being made to Fuller and simultaneously, apply to the MSBA for funding approval for renovation work at Farley.

2 | P a g e 5. What would need to happen to Farley if any of the options were invoked and Farley were used as a temporary location for Fuller School during renovations? a. We estimate that minimal work would be needed to adapt Farley School as temporary “swing” space for displacement of Fuller Middle School population during renovations. b. It is able to be occupied as a middle school because the building was originally built as a middle school (Barbieri Elementary School mirrors Farley.) c. The cafeteria is inadequate, so our recommendation would be to renovate the pool area into a cafetorium that will serve the school whether it is occupied temporarily as a middle school or longer term as an elementary school. Since MSBA funding may not be available for this conversion, we would recommend converting the space using Town funds.

6. What would need to be done at Farley School in order to occupy it as an elementary school? a. Bathrooms would need to be made handicap accessible b. Bathrooms would need to conform to Office for Children Standards c. The cafeteria is inadequate for use because it is too small. Barbieri School, which is a mirror image of Farley School, currently has to schedule six seatings at lunch in order to accommodate its student population. d. The auditorium is inadequate because it is too small. (Barbieri’s auditorium currently can house 50% of its population. Current enrollment at Barbieri is 615.) e. We would need to install a kitchen as there is not one at present.

7. How would you resolve those issues? a. Renovate bathrooms to retrofit with handicap access and accommodate Office of Children Standards for elementary school level in terms of fixtures. These are two separate issues. b. Remodel the pool area to accommodate the student population, whether it is an elementary or middle school. (It would be required.)

8. Is the area of the pool useable as it is now? a. No. b. The pool area has been closed off from the rest of the building since Mass Bay took over occupancy, and the roof over the pool area was never replaced. So, there are serious questions about the integrity of the roof and its structure and the pool area itself is beyond repair and must be replaced. We recommend filling it in as we did at Barbieri and converting that space to a cafetorium. c. Mold remediation in the entire pool area may need to be done.

3 | P a g e d. The roof is leaking and needs to be replaced perhaps including the entire roof deck which has deteriorated so badly there is vegetation growing on the roof.

9. Why do we need Fuller if we move the students to Farley? a. Framingham Public Schools has seen three consecutive years of increased enrollments at the kindergarten level. 1. 2012-2013: 800 2. 2011-2012: 793 3. 2010-2011: 702 b. NESDEC’s demographic enrollment projections indicate steady, if not, increased enrollments continuing to rise at the elementary level; birth records and historical data have been taken into consideration. 1. Current K-5 enrollment: 4326 2. 2013-2014 projected enrollment: 4319 3. 2014-2015 projected enrollment: 4354 4. 2015-2016 projected enrollment: 4356

10. Why would we move students to Farley and not elsewhere? a. There are no other school buildings that are vacant. b. No other town-owned property is available. c. The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) will not reimburse for temporary space, e.g., the rental of another building, construction of modular units.

11. Why do we need Farley after Fuller Middle School has been renovated? a. Farley is the only available school building on the south side, which is where the enrollment growth is most evident. b. It gives us the capacity where the students reside. c. It is the only available school building that could reasonably be used as a contingency during future construction, i.e., “swing” space where students could be relocated during major reconstruction of an existing school building.

PLEASE NOTE: The most recent “new” elementary school is Woodrow Wilson, built in 1998. The next “newest” schools (Barbieri and Farley Schools) were built in 1974 and 1973 respectively, 38 and 39 years ago. Most of the remaining elementary schools are already over the average “life expectancy” of 50 years, so the Town will need to develop a plan to accommodate either major renovations or replacement of some schools in the near future. Having a school that can function as a “swing” school is critical to this plan. In addition, there are currently 6 modular classrooms – four at Hemenway School and two at Brophy School – that SHOULD BE DECOMMISSIONED. These spaces were never intended for permanent occupancy, and there should be a plan to remove them from service as soon as possible. If Farley School were to reopen as an

4 | P a g e elementary school, we would strongly recommend that those 6 classrooms be taken out of service and removed. Hence, the plan to keep Farley School in the Town’s inventory of school buildings serves a number of critical purposes for the future of our schools.

d. It would help reduce the current overcrowding in some schools and the unsatisfactory use of spaces in many elementary schools where rooms that were never designed as instructional spaces are being pressed into service due to enrollment pressures. e. It could be used in the event a building were needed due to a catastrophic event of another building f. If the enrollments were to decline, it would allow us to permanently de-commission one of our older elementary school buildings.

12. Could we tear down Fuller and build a school on the property behind it? a. No. The Conservation Commission map of wetlands delineates the field area behind Fuller cannot be built on.

13. Are there areas of the building that could be salvaged and what are the reasons to salvage, in part or in whole, other parts of Fuller Middle School? a. Buildings and Grounds Department b. Buildings and Grounds Department vehicle storage c. Buildings and Grounds inventory rooms d. Buildings and Grounds vehicle repair bays e. Framingham Adult ESL Program Plus f. Accept Transportation g. F-PAC Cable Television Studio h. The Vision Center i. The current cafeteria j. The current gymnasium k. The current auditorium

14. How much space is used in Fuller currently by outside the school day/operations? a. Buildings and Grounds, ACCEPT, Adult ESL Program, Vision Center and F-PAC occupy 36,000 square feet.

15. Is there anything more we can add to Fuller that would not be reimbursed? a. Yes. The FPS Transportation Department offices, currently housed in a stand-alone building, connected via outside connection to a modular unit for offices. b. The bus yard itself, which is currently located on both Park and Recreation Department property (an undesirable use of their space) and rented property (CSX lot across Fountain Street), which is a cost that could be avoided once the buses are relocated on to School Department property. (FPS lease with CSX: $33,500 per year.)

5 | P a g e 16. Why? a. The MSBA will not reimburse for portions of the building that are for outside the purpose of educating the population effected. The most we can expect for reimbursement is roughly 100,000 square feet of new educational space. b. The cafeteria, gymnasium and auditorium are larger than the MSBA model for those same rooms. c. We would need to build much smaller rooms than those we currently have d. The MSBA will not reimburse for larger rooms than they designed in their model, therefore, it would be prudent to retain those rooms in their current size. e. If we were to include rooms of the same dimensions, it would not meet MSBA model and thus the MSBA percentage for reimbursement would be effected (lower.) f. Relocating the Transportation Office would allow the modular unit they currently occupy for office space to be removed. g. Relocating the bus yard would allow the School Department to return full use of the parking lot to the Park & Recreation Department and Loring Arena, a very desirable goal for both the School Committee and the Park and Recreation Commissioners. h. It would allow the FPS to discontinue its lease agreement with CSX for use of its parking lot across the street from the office on Fountain Street.

17. What happens when Fuller is complete? a. We reoccupy it as a Middle School b. The portions outlined earlier, Buildings and Grounds, F-PAC Cable Television Studio, the Vision Center, the current cafeteria, gymnasium and auditorium would have been retained and incorporated into the renovations. c. The Bus yard and offices would be relocated at Fuller.

18. What happens to Farley when students return to Fuller? a. It would be used to:  Permit the removal of six temporary modular classrooms that should not be considered part of our permanent inventory of educational spaces.  Relieve elementary school population pressure.  Relieve space pressures that have caused us to use inappropriate spaces for learning.  Allow for the creation of critically needed space for the district during reconstruction or emergency occupancy.  It could become site to house elementary school students as FPS moves through renovation cycles at aging elementary schools.

6 | P a g e  Farley can be used to provide educational space for overcrowding as temporary modular classrooms come off line at Hemenway (4) and Brophy (2) Elementary Schools because they will be at the end of their useful life.

19. What role does the MSBA play? a. It reimburses cities and towns for projects, as approved. b. When applying for MSBA approval, cities and towns must use their format for funding and selection of project management, a building committee needs to be formed for project oversight, etc. c. Framingham’s current reimbursement rate, based on the FPS free and reduced lunch program applicants most recently was 59.9% (Stapleton) d. MSBA opens up “windows” for project submittals with little notice and closes them within 90 days or less.

20. What is the time period? a. Submit a Statement of Interest (SOI) to the MSBA in January 2013. b. If approved, start in-house improvements at Farley School in 2015. c. Complete in-house renovations at Farley in 2016. d. Move student population out of Fuller in 2016. e. Complete renovation/construction at Fuller in 2018. f. Move Fuller student population out of Farley and back to Fuller in 2018. g. Farley becomes available as elementary school in 2019.

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