COLCHESTER, Vt. (WCAX) – Colchester voters will see a $115 school improvement bond measure on the ballot next week. It comes as school officials say many building systems in the district have reached the end of their usable life.
“It’s not uncommon for something to go wrong that we can’t control,” said Marc Gagne, a social studies teacher who has worked at Colchester Middle School for almost 12 years and he says the building’s gotten so old it’s a distraction to learning.
“Even in this room, just a couple of weeks ago the pipes corroded. They didn’t even burst, they were old and so they corroded and the poor science teacher on my team had to change her plans on the fly.”
And head of maintenance Charles Rowse says the buildings are getting too difficult to maintain and he’s having trouble finding the parts needed for repairs. “Everything’s just gotten old to the point where it’s getting hard to fix, things are just becoming obsolete,” he said.
A $115 million dollar bond proposal up for a vote on Election Day would go towards replacing HVAC, electrical, and lighting systems at Porters Point, Colchester Middle, and Union Memorial Schools. It would also make the ‘60s era building compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and move the preschool from Malletts Bay into Porters Point and Union Memorial.
But school leaders know putting an extra load on taxpayers is a big ask, given the burden education funding already adds. “How long can we wait? And we look at some of the needs — our roofs have surpassed their useful life, our windows are failing — and it’s time to invest. If we wait longer, what then will happen is the cost of these projects will just increase over time,” said Colchester School Superintendent Amy Minor.
Looking at the impact on taxpayers, the project will be completed in three phases starting in 2026 and ending in 2030. Taxpayers will not contribute to the bond until 2027. The average household valued at $350,000 would initially have to pay $43 extra per year. That would increase to $733 per year by 2031 and then go down each following year. Because 61% of homeowners qualify for Vermont’s Property Tax Credit, officials say they would contribute on a sliding scale based on income.
Colchester is one of the lowest-spending school districts in Chittenden County and would remain below the statewide average even if the bond goes through.
If the bond passes, construction is expected to begin in 2026 and end around 2030.