On September 6, the Town Council voted (4-2, Pratt, Phillips, 1 absent, Kuech) to authorize a referendum question for borrowing up to $10,523,215.00 for three capital projects requested by the School Committee. Voters will decide at the November 8 election whether or not the town should issue bonds to finance a $4,300,000 HVAC system for the Gorham High School (GHS) which includes air conditioning the building, $423,215 for LED lighting at GHS, and completion of the Narragansett Elementary School Modular Expansion Project costing $5,800,000.

The School Committee had requested the Council authorize a bond referendum for six projects totaling $20,025,956, but they rejected authorization for eight GHS modular classrooms and expansion of the GHS cafeteria, Narragansett Elementary School HVAC, and replacing the Village Elementary School floor.

During public comment before the Council took up the question, Gorham residents Jim Means and Phillip Gagnon spoke in opposition to the bond issue request, citing the potential effect of the recent reassessment on the mil rate and questioning the need for the projects.

The councilors were also concerned about the impact on taxpayers but considered the expense of maintaining old systems and the potential for higher costs for these necessary projects in the future. As Councilor Virginia Wilder-Cross said,” We are caught between a rock and a hard place.”

Councilor Ben Hartwell, concerned with the cost of deferred maintenance, said, “We can’t keep kicking the can down the road.” The HVAC systems at both GHS and Narragansett are more than thirty years old. He said, however, that after approving a debt limit last month, only about $26 million could be authorized for bonding town and school capital projects.