Update: Concrete falls from ceiling, closes Winter Hill Community School

On June 2, 2023, in Latest News, by The Somerville Times

Friday’s message from Somerville Public School District

Dear Winter Hill Community,

First and foremost, we want to thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to ensure the safety and well being of our school community. We will update you throughout the weekend with any and all updates, and we want to share what we know right now.

As of this evening, we know that we will not be able to reoccupy the Winter Hill for the remainder of this school year. The district and the city have been working since yesterday on relocation plans for all Winter Hill classrooms. Currently, the plan is for classes to resume on Thursday, June 8th, in order to prepare off-site space for student learning.

Locations will be shared once finalized, and we hope to have details on this and any other measures by the end of the weekend. We will share those with you as soon as possible.

Additionally, we are planning to host a community meeting early next week that will allow students, families, and staff to ask questions and where we will share any new information that becomes available.

Sincerely,

Dr. Jeff Curley, Interim Superintendent of Schools

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne

Courtney Gosselin, Principal, WHCIS

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Previous letter:

A message from Somerville Public School District

Dear Winter Hill Community,

This week, outside of operating hours and while the school was unoccupied, a small section of concrete fell onto a stairwell inside of the school. Immediately after this was found by staff, the stairwell was closed to both students and staff and a structural engineer was brought into the building to conduct an immediate review. DPW staff also immediately responded and have conducted minor repairs and have been monitoring the interior of the building.

Out of an abundance of caution at this time, we have made the decision to close the school on Friday, June 2nd, while structural engineers conduct a more thorough review of the building. We expect this to happen sometime in the next several days. SPS administration and the Mayor’s Office are working together on a contingency plan for temporary relocation of classrooms into other buildings in the event that this may be necessary. That planning has already begun. We will continue to keep the entire Winter Hill school community updated throughout the weekend as we learn more.

As always, the safety and well being of our students and staff remains our top priority. Canceling classes and closing a school are always our last choice, however in the interest of safety we have determined the best option for tomorrow is to allow for a more thorough review.

Again, we will share updates regularly throughout the weekend as information becomes available.

Sincerely,

Dr. Jeff Curley, Interim Superintendent of Schools

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne

Courtney Gosselin, Principal, WHCIS