Fall River City Council approves plan for new Diman High School

On Tuesday evening, the Fall River City Council approved the plan for a New Diman High School.

During the Committee on Finance meeting, Kaestle Boos Associates, the architects behind the project, presented a plan to the Council for a new building and facilities at a price tag of $293.5 million.

The plan was approved later in the evening during the City Council meeting by a vote of 6-3 with President Pam Laliberte-Lebeau, Vice President Michelle Dionne, and Andrew Raposo voting against.

The councilors who voted against the plan appear to not be against a new Diman, but have concerns on how it will be funded. It appeared the three no votes wanted to hear from the Administration what the options are to fund the city’s share of the cost before approving the plan as the council had until May to take a vote.

This spring, Somerset, Westport, and Swansea, in separate town meetings, are expected to vote on the funding for the school as the plan has already been approved in those communities.

It is currently unclear if a city ordinance mandates that Fall River voters must decide on the city’s portion of the funding.

New Diman High School by the numbers:

Enrollment: 1500 students
Total building square footage: 394,650 square feet
Total Project Cost: $293.5 million
Potential MSBA Reimbursement: 79.77% Does not include costs such as:
• Construction Cost Cap of $360/sf
• Site Cost Cap of 8%
• Hazardous Materials
• Temp Facilities
• Un-reimbursable Square Footage

POTENTIAL MSBA FUNDING: 149.7-$152.6M
ESTIMATED DISTRICT SHARE: $139.9M – $141.9M
District Funding: 49%
Base repair of existing building if new school is not built: $156-$161 million

Estimated costs per community if funded through property taxes (30 years)
Fall River: $6.5 million per year ($69 in property taxes for every $100,000 in home value).
Somerset: $825,000 per year, ($26 in property taxes per $100,000 in home value).
Swansea: $710,000 per year ($25 in property taxes per $100,000 in home value).
Westport: $445,000 per year ($11 in property taxes per $100,000 in home value).

The new school would be built on the current football field and would expect to break ground in 2023-2024 and be completed in 2026-2027 with the project finishing with the demolition of the current school. The new building is expected to be a 50-year solution.