Braintree School Committee Backs $86.2 Million FY27 Budget With $1 Million Still Unresolved

NEWBURYPORT — March 25, 2026 — Braintree School Committee received a $86.2 million FY27 budget recommendation and heard stark facilities cost data as members offered first formal feedback on a four-scenario school consolidation master plan. DPW Director Matt Jocks told the committee that Highlands School costs $4.56 per square foot to operate year to date — nearly double Hollis at $2.61 — with year-to-date maintenance spending of roughly $233,000 at Highlands against $125,000 at Ross, driven by heating system failures requiring outside vendors; replacing Highlands' boilers alone would cost an estimated $2.6 million, and a full heating-system overhaul could reach $7 to $8 million. Finance Director Sarah Coffin said the recommended FY27 budget of $86.2 million incorporates $1 million in cuts from the level-services figure, including a Morrison third-grade section, a Highlands fourth-grade section, four paraprofessional positions, and four middle school positions, with a remaining $1 million gap still unresolved with the mayor's office. Chair Rollo announced a March 30 temperature-check vote on which of the four ERS master plan scenarios to continue studying. The committee voted unanimously to require the district to provide all documents in its possession created or relied upon by consultants ERS and Perkins Eastman in preparing the master plan, and adjourned to executive session on a 6-0 roll-call vote to address a Braintree Education Association grievance.