Council Moves Forward with Renovation Plan for Rocky Hill High School

The Town Council unanimously approved a resolution Monday night that would allow it, along with the Board of Education, to move forward with plans to renovate .

The plan would focus on the .

In June,

“Bottom line, this work needs to be done,” said Deputy Mayor Philip J. Sylvestro. “We all knew these improvements were needed. Therefore, the NEASC report did not tell us anything that we didn’t know.”

has to prepare a special progress report by Nov. 1 addressing those concerns.

“The main purpose of this resolution is to make the job of the high school principal easier in making his response to the NEASC Committee,” said Mayor Anthony LaRosa. “And hopefully, this will. Basically, we are looking to move forward and get this done.”

to discuss a that included repairs to the elementary schools as well as the high school. However, the Town Council felt the plan should focus on improving the concerns at the high school addressed in the NEASC report.

The plan would address concerns such as meeting current Americans with Disabilities Act specifications, improving the HVAC system and upgrading the science labs. The plan would not address curriculum concerns like textbooks and technology issues because they are “not the responsibility of the council.“ 

“Our high school students and our community deserve for our kids to go to an accredited high school,” said Councilor Nadine Bell. “Anything less than that is not acceptable.”

She suggested “fast tracking” the items that would put the school in compliance with NEASC.

“We need to get to work right away," Bell said. "So we don’t jeopardize the accreditation.”

Town officials would “seek public input in the development of the plans.” The Town Council is expected to hold workshops with members of the Board of Education and the public. LaRosa did not want to form a subcommittee at this time.

With the downturn in the economy, Sylvestro questioned whether taxpayers would support renovations to the high school.

“In my opinion, they will only support something that is truly necessary.“

He also said the town has other infrastructure needs.

Councilor Frank Szeps said the plan's costs and how taxpayers would have to pay has not yet been determined. Some councilors also made it clear the council is not committing to a referendum by passing the resolution.