BOSTON, MA – State Treasurer Steven Grossman, Chairman of the Massachusetts School Building Authority (“MSBA”), and Katherine Craven, MSBA Executive Director, today announced that the MSBA Board voted to approve the schematic designs and funding to replace the Morton Middle School. The next step in the process is for Fall River and the MSBA to enter into a Project Funding Agreement which will detail the project’s scope and budget and set forth the terms and conditions under which the city will receive its grant from the MSBA.
The new Morton Middle School will serve sixth through eighth graders. The total budget for the project is $53.2 million with the MSBA contributing 80% of eligible costs for a total grant of $38.2 million.
“I have personally visited both Mayor Flanagan and the Morton Middle School. I was pleased to see not only the recent progress made on the plans for Morton, but also to see yet another example of how our process helps needy districts like Fall River. I anticipate a productive collaboration with Fall River on this important and much needed capital improvement project,” stated Katherine Craven, MSBA Executive Director.
The MSBA strives to find the right-sized, most fiscally responsible and educationally appropriate solutions to create safe and sound learning environments. The MSBA is committed to protecting the taxpayer’s dollar by improving the school building grant process and avoiding the mistakes of the past in the funding and construction of school facilities. In its six year history, the MSBA has made $7.5 billion in reimbursements to cities, towns and regional school districts for school construction projects. These timely payments have saved municipalities over $2.9 billion in avoided local interest costs and have provided much needed cash flow to communities in these difficult economic times.
