Quick Links:

Bancroft Building Project Blog: 

http://bancroftbuildingproject.blogspot.com/ 

Upcoming meetings - Please see a link to this document at the bottom of this page.

Powerpoint presentation by SMMA at the 10/19/2009 community meeting:

http://www.aps1.net/DocumentView.aspx?DID=903

Streaming video of school committee meetings:

http://andovertv.org/school_committee_meetings

Bancroft/Shawsheen Advisory Committee wish list for the new school - Please see a link to this document at the bottom of this page.

School Building Committee Information/Minutes: http://www.aps1.net/index.aspx?nid=426

Background Information

When the Bancroft School was built in the late 1960’s, its architect was hailed as a visionary for creating such an impressive and unusual design for a school.  Since then, the Bancroft community has grown and elementary education has changed, creating the need for additional building space.  Additionally, because of its design, Bancroft is costly to maintain.  Thus, in June, 2008, a committee was formed to study the physical needs of the Bancroft School and explore options for renovation or replacement.

In 2008, The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) selected Bancroft as part of a building program in which a portion of the cost is paid out of state building funds.  The MSBA will be our partner throughout the planning and building process.

Current News

The Bancroft building project has entered a very exciting phase!  In September, the Design Selection Panel of the MSBA selected the Cambridge firm Symmes, Maini & McKee Associates (SMMA) to conduct the feasibility study on the project. 

SMMA is the firm that designed the Wood Hill/High Plain project several years ago.  Those who were involved in that project were quite pleased with SMMA for several reasons.  SMMA worked well with the community, keeping them informed and soliciting their input.  They were also responsive to the needs of the community long term.  Thus, long after the project was completed, they stood behind their work, addressing any concerns at no cost to Andover! They stated: “a client is a client for life”, making a commitment that one rarely hears these days.  Finally, the Andover community is very pleased with the end product: the Wood Hill/High Plain Schools. 

There are two pieces of information that are important for us to know about using SMMA.  One is that although we may use SMMA for the final project, we made no guarantees to them that this will happen.  After the feasibility study is done and the town votes on a debt exclusion override to fund the project, an architectural firm will be chosen to complete the project.  This may or may not be SMMA.  Second, the Bancroft project will not be a carbon copy of the Wood Hill/High Plain project.  SMMA understands that our community is different and our needs are different. 

So, where are we now?  The project will move forward quickly over the next several months.  Decisions must be made about what kind of building the Bancroft site will accommodate.  The designer has begun research to this end; but will also start to meet with the community about our hopes and dreams for the school.  In addition, the School Committee must decide on an educational plan for the new school.  This includes deciding how Shawsheen will be integrated into the project.   

Please plan to attend School Committee and School Building Committee meetings during the next month so you can provide input and help shape the design of the new Bancroft!  See the Quick Links section above for meeting dates, times, and locations.

Finally, we hope that the feasibility study will be done before the spring town meeting so that a vote can be taken at that time.  If that does not happen, there will be a couple of options.  A special town meeting may be held later in the spring to vote on the project.  This would enable the project to proceed without a major delay.  The other option would be to hold a fall special town meeting.  As the feasibility study progresses, we will get a better sense of the next step.

Questions?

If you have questions or suggestions, please contact:

Christa DiNapoli, Bancroft PTO liaison to the building committee at dinapoli.family@comcast.net,

Francine Goldstein, Bancroft Principal, at f2goldstein@aps1.net

Or, send a message to the building committee at sbc@aps1.net