Needham's $325.4 million Pollard Middle School project faces two critical votes Monday, August 3, when the Select Board meets in special session to approve a Warner Field Memorandum of Agreement and finalize the debt exclusion ballot language for the November 3 override election.

Both items must clear the board before the debt exclusion question can go to Needham voters on Tuesday, November 3. If either stalls, the project's schedule and costs could shift.

The agenda has just two items.

The special meeting notice, posted by the Town Clerk's Office at 11:28 a.m. on Tuesday, July 28, lists a vote on the Warner Field MOA at 6 p.m. and a vote on ballot language at 6:10 p.m. The meeting will be held in the Select Board Chambers at Town Hall, 1471 Highland Ave., and via Zoom.

ALSO SEE | Needham boards vote Tuesday on placing $325.4 million Pollard school project on November ballot

The new Pollard school plan calls for drilling geothermal wells under the field, a move that saved millions by avoiding multi-phase drilling on the existing sloped school site, according to the district's project FAQ. But because Warner Field is protected parkland, the Massachusetts School Building Authority flagged a potential conflict with Article 97 of the state constitution, which restricts converting public parkland to non-park uses, according to Patch.

The MOA is the legal mechanism to resolve that conflict. Needham officials had delayed placing the override on the ballot while the Article 97 question was being worked out.

The School Building Committee unanimously endorsed the $325.4 million design at its Monday, June 8 meeting, according to the Needham Observer. That figure is $10.9 million less than an earlier $336 million estimate, even as the building grew by 11,000 square feet to 265,572 square feet. The budget includes a 7% construction contingency of roughly $18.25 million.

The new school would house grades 6 through 8 at the rear of the current Pollard site, reuniting all three middle school grades under one roof. Pollard currently serves only 7th and 8th graders.

School Building Committee member Stuart Chandler explained the contingency increase at the June 8 meeting: "We're going to be asking the town for money and the last thing we want to do is go back to them again because something went wrong," he said, as reported by the Needham Observer on June 10.

What's at stake for taxpayers

If the override fails in November, the fallback is repairing the existing Pollard building at an estimated $167 million, a project that would not qualify for MSBA reimbursement, according to Needham Local. The MSBA could reimburse 20% to 25% of eligible costs on the new building, potentially $65 million to $80 million.

Superintendent Dan Gutekanst said at a June 30 community meeting, as reported by Needham Local on July 6, that a failed override would mean "having more community meetings about simply a repair of a building that's not going to get you the educational facility you need for generations to come."

What comes next

The Select Board's Monday, August 3 meeting is open to the public in person and via Zoom (Webinar ID: 826 0101 3229, Passcode: 652800). The MSBA board is scheduled to vote on project reimbursements Wednesday, August 26. A Pollard community meeting is also set for that evening at 6 p.m. in the Pollard auditorium. Town Meeting will take up Pollard funding at the October 2026 Special Town Meeting, followed by the November 3 debt exclusion vote.