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Council Approves Kindergarten Project

The Legislative Council's finance committee voted Wednesday to recommend to

the full council that architect Jim Lawler be paid $38,000 to begin designing

a new kindergarten area at Head O' Meadow School.

The Board of Education has been pushing for this project for several years.

The renovations are vital, according to Amy Dent, school board chair. The

existing classroom, originally designed for an open school, is no longer

appropriate for the needs of today's students. Also, the classroom has several

code compliance issues that must be addressed.

The total cost of the project is estimated at $834,700. The state's

reimbursement of $292,145 drops the overall cost to the town to $542,555.

Mr Lawler's total fee (at 80 percent) is $56,000. However, the school board

encumbered $18,000 in last year's budget.

The total cost of the project would be funded outside the Board of Education's

operating budget in the town's capital non-recurring account.