In Dedham, group has school roof plans covered

A committee overseeing the construction of a new Avery School has given a nod to form over function.

The School Building Rehabilitation Committee last night unanimously directed Dore & Whittier Architects Inc. to proceed with pitched roofs for the main portion of the new Avery.

A flat roof would cost about $117,000 less, but constructing an Avery with two hips on either side of a central gable would make the difference between "a building that we're proud of versus a building that is solely just functional," said committee Chairman Andy Lawlor.

Lawlor said Dedham's generally long-lived school buildings are not only functional, but are also "statements of values."

"And so because they're a reflection of who we are as a people, they're not just boxes like a Target store or a Home Depot. They're statements of the value we place in education. So I think aesthetics within reason is a value that can be equal to or surpass cost," Lawlor said.

Even if they cost $150,000 extra, he added, it would be worth it: "It's a building that in my view will help elevate the town, and be a real keystone for East Dedham."

Superintendent June Doe said she preferred the aesthetics of a pitched roof, while committee member Robert Naser said "the pitched roof adds more character to the building, there's no question about that. And I think that there is definitely an affinity in town for pitched roofs over flat roofs, especially given the relatively small difference in cost."

The committee's decision "lets us move substantially forward on designing" the roof for the main part of the building, said architect Dawn Guarriello of Dore & Whittier.

The two hips (or four-sided pitches) would have skylights, while the gable would tentatively be attic space. Guarriello said, however, that the boiler room could possibly be taken from the east side of the first floor and put under the gable, which would shave off 1,100 square feet from the school's ground footprint.

The committee was not ready to commit on the roof over the gymnasium, on the east side of the proposed new school, and so deferred on that. Guarriello said she would come back to show the committee pitched and flat options for that portion of the roof.

The undersized 88-year-old Avery School, at 123 High St. in East Dedham, is in bad need of replacement due to problems such as antiquated plumbing and poor air circulation. The new school would be built on 5 or 6 acres off Pottery Lane. It is expected that a special Town Meeting would consider the project in November, with a townwide debt-exclusion bond authorization vote to follow in January.

At its last meeting, the school rehab committee tasked Dore & Whittier with paring down its preliminary three-story design to reduce costs. Guarriello said the firm consequently reduced the building footprint from 29,000 to 27,000 square feet, taking the media center off the first floor and placing it over the cafeteria. (The total square footage of the building remains at 61,000 square feet.) That and other changes reduced the cost of the proposed new Avery from $309 to $304 per square foot.

Guarriello also reported that following a conference call last week, the Massachusetts School Building Authority agreed to a 310-student enrollment for the new Avery, instead of the 290 figure that the authority had suggested. Those participating in the call include committee members Doe, Lawlor, Avery School Principal Clare Sullivan, Guarriello and project manager Jim Byrne.

Lawlor said those 20 students represent an additional 3,600 square feet - so with the authority consenting to the higher enrollment, Dedham should be reimbursed 52 percent of the $1.08 million cost for that extra footage, instead of paying the full amount itself.

A new 310-enrollment school would normally be 55,600 square feet, but the Dedham committee is pushing for a 61,000-square-foot building. Lawlor has said the extra space would provide for a first-rate special education facility and give the district the flexibility to shrink from five to four elementary schools down the road, if necessary.

Lawlor said last night the total cost of the new school is now projected at $21.8 million. The School Building Authority would presumably reimburse 52 percent of that cost; a crucial meeting with the authority is scheduled for Sept. 30.

Daily News staff writer Edward B. Colby can be reached at 781-433-8336 or ecolby@cnc.com.