Please show up in-person or virtually Monday 2/23 at 6:30 to make public comment at Amherst Town Council asking that the Town Manager allocate a portion of the free cash to repair the auditorium roof at ARMS. Right now this portion of the roof will NOT be repaired this summer when the rest of the roof is. Please share your experience regarding the condition of the auditorium/middle school due to the roof leaking. You can also submit written comment. More info below.
As you know, the majority of the ARMS roof is scheduled to be repaired this summer, paid for in part by state funding (the four member towns of the Regional district will pay the rest). The portion of the roof over the auditorium, though, is NOT included in this repair because it is not old enough to qualify for state funding. Like the rest of the building, the auditorium section roof has been leaking badly for many years.
Amherst Town Councilor and Finance Committee Chair Cathy Schoen approached the Regional District about potentially using Town free cash for the auditorium repair, the cost of which would be approximately $1.6 million. Initially, the Regional School Committee declined to move forward with this process because members from the three other towns indicated that their towns would not be able to contribute at this time. Cathy Schoen then proposed that Amherst pay for the entire auditorium roof. The difference in Amherst paying the whole thing versus only its portion is only $350,000. Cathy asked the District to provide certain information and to submit a formal request for the money. That has been provided, and yet the Town Manager has NOT included this money in his financial orders of how to allocate the surplus. On Monday, the Town Manager will present his plans for spending the surplus and so we need to show up and ask that the auditorium roof be included.
Amherst should pay for this and should do it now!
- The situation in the auditorium is BAD. Repairing this roof is a health and safety necessity.
- It will be more cost-efficient to repair the entire roof at once and will become costlier the longer we wait.
- There is more than enough surplus money to repair the roof and still pay for other priorities. Putting money away into savings when it’s raining in our school is ridiculous.
- The Town of Amherst SHOULD pay more for this repair than the other towns. The Town of Amherst makes extensive use of our school buildings without paying for them (other than rec offices and pools). The Town derives a benefit from ARMS that the other towns do not and thus should be willing to pay.
- There is a double standard at play here where the Town has, over the last two years, awarded itself millions of dollars to repair the Town Hall roof (insisting on rare, expensive red slate) while putting off addressing the ARMS roof. A recent application for CPA (taxpayer) money for the Town Hall roof stated, “A leaking roof system directly threatens the building’s structural integrity…Water infiltration can cause extensive damage…addressing the roof repair promptly prevents cost escalation…The longer the problem remains unaddressed, the more severe the damage becomes, leading to significantly higher and potentially prohibitive repair costs in the future.”
- This leaking roof is hurting the Regional Schools operating budget – ongoing leak mitigation funds are coming out of a budget that could otherwise be used to pay staff. ARMS has lost rental revenue over the years as groups no longer want to rent the auditorium due to the deteriorating condition.
- Our schools should not have to face a choice between asking for money for adequate staffing and safe buildings – we need and deserve both!
Meeting Info:
- Monday February 23rd 6:30, Town Room at Town Hall – Share your experience or observations about the condition of the auditorium/building due to a leaking roof
- Can also join virtually – we will share the link as soon as it’s available.
- Submit written comment to Town Council https://www.amherstma.
gov/councilcomments - Have pictures of the leaks/water damage? Please send them to me and we can use on social media/website.
More background info here: https://www.arpsparents.com/arms-roof-crisis/