FAQs • North Attleborough, MA • CivicEngage

If North Attleboro votes “no” on the Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School Building Project, will the Town still need to fund the project?: If the vote on October 24 passes by a collective majority vote, then the project will move forward. The vote is a regional vote- not town-by-town.

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Tri-County Building Project FAQ's

1. When will North Attleboro residents have an opportunity to vote on the Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School Building Project?: October 24, 2023 from 12 noon to 8:00 pm at North Attleboro High School.

2. How much will the Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School Building Project cost?: The cost of the project will be $285,992,692. Tri-County will bill each of the member communities for the cost of the project. The annual project costs for your community are based on the number of students enrolled in Tri-County. Enrollment numbers are divided by the annual costs of the project loan and given to each community. The cost of the project is in addition to the annual tuition each community pays for its students that are enrolled in Tri-County. Currently, North Attleboro has 245 students enrolled in Tri-County and pays approximately $3.6 million a year in tuition costs. North Attleboro’s share of this project is based on 245 students and comes to approximately $3,000,000 annually. If the number of students increases the Town’s share of the project increases and we will pay more. If the number of students decreases, the Town pays less for the project. The annual pay will change year to year based on the enrolled population. The total estimated cost for tuition and the building project is $6.6 million a year.

3. How much of the cost of the Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School Building Project will the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) pay?: Between $83 million and $100 million dollars.

4. What potential strategies can North Attleboro use to pay its share of the Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School Building Project?: Not included on this ballot is how North Attleboro will pay for the school building project. The Town must pay for the project with the existing budget or decide to place a debt exclusion vote on the ballot in an election in the future. No decision has been made yet on which path the Town will pursue. Each town will decide how to best cover their portion of the project cost. North Attleboro will not borrow funds to pay for its project share.

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6. If North Attleboro votes “no” on the Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School Building Project, will the Town still need to fund the project?: If the vote on October 24 passes by a collective majority vote, then the project will move forward. The vote is a regional vote- not town-by-town.

7. How many North Attleboro students attend Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School?: 245 students grade 9-12

8. If the number of North Attleboro students in Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School changes, how will it affect the Town’s financial share of the building project?: If the number of students enrolled at Tri-County increases, the cost of the project billed to the Town increases. If the number of students enrolled at Tri-County decreases, the cost of the project decreases for the Town. The costs of the school building project and the tuition are separate. If the vote passes North Attleboro can expect to pay, based on current enrollment, approximately $3.6 million in tuition and an additional $3 million in school constructions costs annually for the next 30 years.

9. Can North Attleboro bring vocational training courses back to North Attleboro High School?: The state made the decision to regionalize vocational high schools 50 years ago so that the towns could share the cost of running these expensive training facilities. If North decided to build a vocational school rather than a comprehensive high school, they would pay 100% of the cost rather than spread it among 11 communities.

10. What will the Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School Building Project include?: The new project will include a new Tri-County Vocational Technical High School complex for the students in the 11 Tri-County communities.