Norwood School Committee Urges High School Addition Plan After Nearly Seven Years-November 7, 1974

Board Votes 5-2 to Send Pared-Down 15-Classroom Proposal and Field House Plan to Permanent Building Construction Committee

After almost seven years, the high school addition plan moved off the school committee table last night. On a 5-2 vote, the board moved to send the plan to the permanent building construction committee, where a preliminary plan will be developed by architects and a price tag attached before it goes to town meeting. The plan, approved last night after yet another presentation by the high school principal, Dr. John F. Monbouquette, has been pared down considerably since first proposed in 1968 when a cost estimate of $9 million was heard. No one present at last night’s meeting, including Richard W. Kief of the permanent building construction committee, was willing to estimate a price. However, member Richard Joseph gave an “educated guess” at around $3 million. Designed to take the high school through the year 1984, the plan calls for adding 15 classrooms to the current structure and projects a leveling-off of the school’s enrollment at 1,275. Originally built in 1927, the structure now houses approximately 1,800 pupils. In addition to the 15 teaching stations, a multi-purpose field house is part of the plan.

Incorporated into the motion of member Rudith M. Berkowitz were requests to the building committee to develop cost estimates on two options: an Olympic-sized swimming pool and an ice hockey rink. The two opposing members, Richard Joseph and Joseph M. Pentowski, favored presenting at least three alternative plans when approaching town meeting. “Half a loaf is better than none,” reasoned Mr. Pentowski.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger