MARLBOROUGH – Step by step, the plans for Richer Elementary School are starting to take shape.
During the City Council meeting on Monday, Dec. 16, Kate Robey, the council’s representative to the Richer School Building Committee, presented an update.
In July, the committee selected Vertex as the project’s owners project manager (OPM). The next step will be to select a designer, which is scheduled for February.
The designer will be part of the project’s next step, a feasibility study. According to Robey, the study will explore two main options – a 950-student facility on the current site, which could be a renovation or reconstruction; or an 870-student facility, with the city funding an expansion of Kane Elementary School to accommodate more students.
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Robey said the costs could range from $35 million to $150 million, depending on the options selected. She reiterated that should the Kane expansion be approved, the city would have to pay for it.
She added that 2025 would be spent on developing plans for the school, with a possible City Council vote on funding in September 2026.
Vertex has recommended community meetings once the project gets farther along.
The school, 80 Foley Road, which was built in 1965, currently houses 575 students in grades K-5. School leaders have previously said that space is tight at Richer and staff are using whatever space is available for classrooms.
For information, visit https://www.mps-edu.org/o/rcc
