The School Committee concluded that leasing new office space to replace Bromfield House as the district office would be an unnecessary expense at this time. The Board of Selectmen and Town Administrator Tim Bragan recently asked the School Committee whether it might join the town in leasing office space outside town center. The schools’ estimated share of the costs came to $40,000 per year for the 2,000 square feet needed by the superintendent, the director of pupil services, and other administrative staff members.
Chairwoman SusanMary Redinger summarized the board’s position, saying it wasn’t in the district’s best interests to lease space that might be distant from the schools when the current building is still adequate. “It is safe, and it is working,” she said of Bromfield House.
Redinger also read aloud a letter from Ken Swanton, chairman of the Historical Commission. Swanton acknowledged that Bromfield House is outside Harvard’s historical district, so the commission does not have jurisdiction over it. But he described the house as “an important gateway building” to Harvard’s town center. He said the commission hoped the School Committee would find a solution that did not require the building’s elimination.
