The City of Somerville Board of Aldermen has approved the issuance of bonds for the construction costs related to the new Somerville High School.

By Joe Ruvido

At their regular meeting on Thursday, Board of Alderman approved the issuance of bonds for the construction costs related to the new Somerville High School.

The total issuance of the bonds will be about half of the $255,982,704 authorized by the board. Massachusetts State Law requires cities to authorize the issuance of bonds for the full amount construction, though the state will reimburse Somerville for about half the cost of the new School.

In November, voters approved an override of proposition 2½, allowing Somerville to raise property taxes to help pay for the new school and cover its borrowing costs. The issuance of the bonds will be overseen by treasurer Michael Bertino’s office.

The approval of the bonds comes at a time of rising interest rates, which will raise the cost of borrowing money. The Bonds for the high school will be issued in phases over the course of time, which means they could be affected by the Federal Reserve’s promise to raise rates this calendar year. However, Somerville enjoys high credit ratings from Wall Street credit-rating agencies, which help reduce its borrowing costs.

The plan for the new school includes a new high school building, renovations to the existing buildings, and upgrades to the sports fields and parking facilities. According to the proposal to the Board of Alderman in July, Somerville High School is the oldest unrenovated school in New England and risks losing accreditation if not improved. Furthermore, the school’s population will increase an estimated 27% in the next decade. Wings of the school that were built in the late 19^th– and early 20th centuries are in need of repair, and outdated technology needs upgrading for competition in the 21st century.

Alderman at-large Mary Jo Rossetti, who serves as the Board’s representative on Mayor Curtatone’s Building Committee, was lauded for her work in helping formulate plans for the new High School facilities and the broader education program for Somerville Schools. “The accreditation team that comes to check our schools said that the building needs repairs,” said Rossetti, who noted that she along with her father and others before him attended Somerville High School in that same building. “We took that thought seriously.”

The Building Committee reviews and scrutinizes every line item of the construction plans for the school. As recently as last week, they removed plans for a $15 million dollar underground parking garage that the state wouldn’t reimburse.

Though the dollar amount of the bonds is unnerving to some, others recognize the need for the new facility, and the important role that strong school systems play in the community. “I’m for it, and I don’t even have kids,” said 38-year-old Ryan McDuggan who owns property in Somerville.

The approval of the bond is one step in the long process of engineering, procurement and construction of the new school, which according to plans won’t be complete until the early 2020’s.