Proposed Whittier School Project

What is the Whittier Building Project?


Whittier began the effort in 2016, approaching the Massachusetts School Building Authority to assist. Since January 2022, the Building Committee has been convening to explore various building options, such as a code upgrade, renovation/addition, as well as new construction. Through a comprehensive qualitative and quantitative analysis of multiple options, the Building Committee determined that constructing a new facility would be the optimal and most cost-effective solution. In August of 2023, Whittier held a meeting with the Clerks of the 11 sending communities to announce the January voting date.

Rendering of the new Proposed Whittier Tech Building2023-08-28-Site-and-Floor-Plan-Diagrams_01-2048x1325

*What will the project cost?


Whittier has communicated that the estimated cost for the project at this time is $446 million. Cost allocation for this Whittier Tech capital project falls under the existing Whittier Tech Regional School Agreement, which states capital project costs are apportioned to each regional member community based on the percentage of school aged children in their member community compared to the total of school aged children in the entire Whittier Tech Regional School District. Amesbury's share of the project cost is 9.74%.

Whittier officials announced that the estimated MSBA reimbursement rate is 62.66% of eligible costs, subject to limitation caps on said eligible costs. The rate is subject to change upon formal MSBA approval which is currently scheduled for December 13th.

At an October meeting of the School Building Committee updated cost estimates include $210,346,087 of eligible expenses and $235,554,161 (52.8%) of excluded or ineligible expenses. This results in an estimated net reimbursement rate of 29.55%.

*What will the project cost the city of Amesbury?

In October, estimated project costs, anticipated MSBA reimbursement, anticipated Whittier Tech Regional District share and thus, individual Whittier Tech member community (City/Town) share costs were provided by the Whittier Superintendent. Amesbury's Estimated Share of the Debt Service can be found here.

Update November 2, 2023: A revised debt schedule was sent to the city of Amesbury and can be found here.

Who are the sending communities?

The 11 sending communities to Whittier Tech are Haverhill, Groveland, Amesbury, Georgetown, Ipswich, Merrimac, Newbury, West Newbury, Rowley, Newburyport and Salisbury.

Amesbury Students Attending Whittier Tech by Fiscal Year

Amesbury Enrollment at Whittier Tech by fiscal year

There currently approximately 1280 students enrolled in Whittier Tech from the 11 sending communities.

When does this get voted on?


The district will conduct a district-wide vote on January 23, 2024, seeking authorization for Whittier to borrow funding to construct the project. To be approved, the project must receive a majority of the total vote in the 11 sending communities.

Amesbury will vote at Amesbury High School, from 11:00am to 7:00pm. Vote by mail is not available for this election.

Want to stay informed on the process?


The Whittier Tech Building Committee has a website dedicated to the project which includes the process, site renderings, FAQ’s, upcoming events and timelines.

Visit: buildingthefutureofwhittier.org

Community Engagement

Amesbury: Community Information Session -  Cancelled

December 11, 2023 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
FREE

Whittier Tech Building Project Information Session
Thursday, November 16, 2023, at 7:00pm

Whittier Tech School
115 Amesbury Line Rd, Haverhill, MA 01830

Presentation can be found here.

No registration required.


Whittier Tech School Project Presentation

Amesbury City Council Meeting

November 28, 2023

7:00pm - 8:00pm

View the presentation on ACTV's Facebook page here.


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Community Poll

  1. Are you in favor of the new Whittier School Project?

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*This information has been provided by Whittier Tech and the Whittier Tech Building Project. Updates to this page will be made as new information is made available.