MIDDLETON — Town Meeting may just save the best for last, with a replacement elementary school and a switch to a speedy development process coming near the end of the warrant.
The warrant article regarding the replacement of Howe-Manning School has been shot down twice before. This time, however, town residents may only be temporarily loaning the money to the project, so Article 37 could have no long-term costs.
The state has pledged to reimburse up to $225,000 for the project's next stage, which would design the school and develop full cost estimates. The town has already spent a similar amount of money on a feasibility study for this project and earlier studies for a new school on Locust Street.
Under preliminary cost estimates, the town and the state would each pay about $18 million for the school. The replacement Howe-Manning School would be built behind the existing building, which would then be torn down.
Town Meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in the gym of North Shore Technical High School, 30 Log Bridge Road.
Another state grant estimated at $150,000 is behind Article 39, which would require the town to approve or deny some large industrial developments within a 180-day limit. Town Administrator Ira Singer would like to use grant money from the state program, called 43D, to revamp the town assessor's maps and move to a computerized geographic information system. The 43D program requires Town Meeting approval of specific properties for the program; this year, voters could adopt parts of the Riverview Industrial Park on Natsue Way for the project, as well as a stretch of Route 114 from the Candlelite Motor Inn toward the North Andover line.
The town is also seeking to completely revamp its zoning bylaws through a 64-page proposal. The reworking, which comes every five years, mostly represents a cleanup without substantial changes. Separate warrant articles cover proposed larger changes to use variances and sign regulations.
The majority of warrant articles cover capital spending. Among them are:
r $303,500 to buy out the leases on five classroom trailers at the town's elementary schools.
r roof repairs at Howe-Manning and the police station.
r $115,000 for interior and exterior repairs at Memorial Hall and Old Town Hall (the current senior center).
r $16,500 to buy new radios for police officers and $65,000 to begin a multiyear program of buying new radios for the Fire Department.
r $18,000 to buy a police motorcycle, $53,000 for a dump truck and $36,000 for a pickup truck with a snowplow attachment.
