By Joseph Domelowicz Jr.
The Lynn schools and City Inspectional Services Director Michael Donovan this week have confirmed plans to purchase a modular, pre-constructed building to be located at the Tracy Elementary School to help ease the overcrowding problems at the school.
According to Donovan, the city will review bids later this month, from companies interested in providing the modular unit and school officials will also work with the city to identify an appropriate place to locate the new modular building on school grounds.
The new modular building has an expected price tag of $500,000 and will hold two classrroms.
The Tracy School already uses one modular building, and Sisson, Hood and Ingalls schools also have modular classroom buildings on their grounds.
City officials, citing the current condition of the Tracy School, asked the state earlier this month for approval of a plan to replace the school. However, that process could take up to seven years and the current overcrowding situation in the school means that a short-term solution must also be found to accommodate the school’s space needs.
The Tracy School’s needs are just the latest effort undertaken by the city to address the deteriorating condition of its school buildings.
When schools re-open following the April vacation next week, students of the Marshall Middle School will be welcomed into the first new school building in the city since Lynn Classical opened its doors more than a decade ago.
Additionally, the city is also currently engaged in a process to replace the current Pickering Middle School as well.
A new Tracy Elementary School, should it come to reality, would be the first new elementary school project in Lynn in several generations.