CAMDEN, Maine — Local residents and their neighbors in Rockport will vote on June 13 whether to sanction the construction of a new $25 million middle school.
The new Camden-Rockport Middle School, if the bond is approved by the MSAD 28 voters, would replace the aging facility at 34 Knowlton Street in Camden, which dates back to 1926 and has been added to and renovated in sections since then.
Taxpayers will foot the bill for the new project, because the likelihood of receiving state funding is improbable, according to the district’s website. It would be repaid over the next 20 years.
MSAD 28 includes elementary and middle school students from Camden and Rockport. When it comes to high school, the two towns are part of Five Town CSD, which also includes students from Appleton, Hope and Lincolnville.
Approximately 365 students attend the middle school. Residents in the towns previously voted on whether to build a new middle school in 2015, but it didn’t garner enough votes for approval.
An ad hoc committee has, over the last few years, vetted the potential solutions to improving the historic structure, which include bringing it up to ADA compliance. A 2014 feasibility study outlined myriad infrastructural and other general needs and areas of improvement that need to be addressed.
The proposed new 83,400-square-foot structure would be on the same 15-acre property as the current building, but set further back from the road, according to the district’s website.
Improvements ushered in with a new building would include adequate space for the size of the student body, a new, separate bus drop-off loop and parking lot, more energy efficient infrastructure, and updated compliance with state and federal safety guidelines.
If voters don’t approve the bond question, the district will be forced to adapt and “patch” existing issues to some capacity, according to the website. Necessary updates that have to be fulfilled regardless will cost approximately $16 million over the next decade to fix and upgrade, but those improvements would only have a 20-year life before another new construction option would be brought before the voters again.
If approved, the project is expected to result in an approximate $98 property tax increase for a $100,000 home in Camden and an approximate $99 tax increase for a home with the same assessed value in Rockport. The increases wouldn’t go into effect until at least the 2018-2019 fiscal year.