Click image for Haverhill City Council agenda.
Haverhill is making formal its plans, first reported by WHAV in December, to consider merging the John Greenleaf Whittier and John C. Tilton Schools.
The Haverhill School Committee last night voted at a special meeting to authorize Superintendent Margaret Marotta to submit a statement of interest to the Massachusetts School Building Authority. The expected formality is the first required step toward having the 456-student Tilton elementary school considered. As WHAV reported, the John Greenleaf Whittier was already invited into a state eligibility period that involves a feasibility study and later steps to determine formally whether the school should be renovated or replaced and the amount of state reimbursement.
Haverhill School Committee member Richard J. Rosa told WHAV last fall he met with members of the School Building Authority during an Oct. 11 site walk at the Concord Street school. While he said then “Nothing is set in stone, We met with delegation from the MSBA and we talked for quite some time, maybe more than hour, about J.G. Whittier and then took a tour of J.G. Whittier and Tilton. The delegation was exploring the idea of building a larger building to consolidate the two schools.”
Haverhill city councilors are also expected to sign off on the Tilton application tonight. In a letter to councilors last Thursday, Assistant Superintendent Michael J. Pifferling explained, “Within our discussions with the MSBA around a potential future J. G. Whittier building project, the MSCA asked us to also submit a (statement of interest) for the Tilton School during the 2024 MSBA submission period. This submission does not necessarily mean a future JGW school would include a merge with the Tilton School, what it does is allow the MSBA and the city the opportunity to consider that option when we are going through the feasibility study phase.”
The brick, three-story Tilton School, 70 Grove St., Haverhill, was built in 1890 followed by additions in 1924 and 1926. In its application, the city describes the building as having limited electrical supply and an outdated cafeteria, among other deficiencies. Boilers were replaced in 2005, but the building has no “widespread air conditioning” or fresh air intakes and the steam radiators are “a safety concern for students and staff.”
The Haverhill City Council meets tonight at 7, remotely and in-person at the Theodore A. Pelosi Jr. Council Chambers, room 202, Haverhill City Hall, 4 Summer St., As a public service, 97.9 WHAV plans to carry the meeting live.