January 25 Special Election for New Northeast Metropolitan Regional High School
“On Tuesday, January 25th, there will be a special election to determine the approval of funds for the construction of a new Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational High School. The election will be held at one single poling location which will be the Malden Senior Center located at 7 Washington Street and the polls will be open from 11AM to 6PM. Regardless of normal voting precincts, all voters will cast their in-person vote for this special election at the Malden Senior Center.”
Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational School (NEMT) Building Project Q&A
What is the proposed project?
The proposed project is to replace the current 240,000 SF facility with a facility of approximately 268,000 SF. The total cost of the project is $317 million. The new facility will allow up to 1,600 students, as compared to the current 1,281, across twelve (12) participating communities.
What is Malden’s share of the project?
Malden currently has 152 students enrolled at NEMT. The annual debt costs associated with the project will change as enrollment changes, however, based upon current enrollment, Malden’s share would start at $220k in 2023, increase to $221k in 2024, then to $667k in 2025 before reaching an annual payment of $1.2 million in 2026 and beyond.
Why are Malden voters being asked to vote on the proposed project?
Each City/Town that is part of the NEMT district has a representative on the NEMT School Committee. The NEMT School Committee voted to approve the school building project. No further action was required by sending districts to approve the project. However, two communities, Saugus and Chelsea, voted to not support funding for the project. Under the relevant state law, this triggers an election by registered voters in ALL sending cities and towns.
When is the election being held?
In Malden, voting will take place at the Malden Senior Center, 7 Washington Street on January 25,2022, between 11am and 6pm.
How is the result determined for theelection?
A simple majority of voters across ALL 12 member communities is required for the project to proceed. In other words, the vote may fail in a single community, but if the voting result across ALL communities combined is more than 50% in favor, then all member communities will participate in the project and its costs.
Are the additional costs going to increase my taxes?
No. The costs to Malden will need to be funded by reallocating from other line items in the budget.