School Committee Warns High School Project Delay Could Cost $17.6 Million
School Committee · Meeting of August 25, 2026
Lexington School Committee warns a wetlands appeal could add up to $17.6 million to the high school rebuild. Member Kathleen Lenahan relayed cost estimates from Director of Public Facilities Michael Cronin showing exposure rising from $1 million-$2.5 million if construction is authorized by September 1 to $17.6 million if delayed past November 1, which would force a winter-break move instead of a summer one. "Mitigation, it can only get you so far," Lenahan said.
The Department of Environmental Protection holds a site walkthrough August 27. Separately, the committee reviewed a timeline for its first formal review of Alpha School's bid to open a Lexington campus, with a vote targeted for mid-December, and approved a corrected 2026-27 school calendar and a consent agenda including a $12,642,103.90 payroll warrant on a 4-0 vote.
In the full story:
- Who Was There
- Organizations And Documents Referenced
- The complete report — 4,150 words
Source: the School Committee meeting of August 25, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
Keep reading with a 30-day free trial
Subscribe to Lexington News to keep reading this post and get 30 days of free access to the full post archives.
Starting a trial requires a payment method. After 30 free days your subscription begins at the price shown at checkout and renews automatically until you cancel. You can cancel anytime from your account. Subscription terms
A subscription gets you:
- Subscriber-only posts and full archive
- Post comments and join the community
- 24x7 access to local news