Somerville New School Building Project

February 2026

The City’s team is advancing the project through the next phase of the MSBA’s process - the feasibility study or preliminary design. During this phase, the project team is working to: 

1. understand and document SPS’s educational requirements for the new building, and;
    
2. prepare an analysis of the City’s preferred site option for the new school building (as well as analyses of other non-preferred options that were considered). 

All community members are invited to come learn more and share their perspective at an upcoming community forum on Tuesday, March 3, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Somerville High School’s Highlander Forum. 

Read on

This work has involved close collaboration between the City’s project team and SPS staff/community members: school tours, programming workshops, and a visioning session have all helped increase understanding of the guiding principles and educational priorities that the new building’s design must support.  

An overview of both of these efforts was presented at this month’s School Building Committee meeting. Samples slides from that meeting are below and the full presentation and recording are available here.  

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The feasibility study phase is currently expected to conclude by late summer 2026. 

March 3 Community Forum and Other Opportunities to Weigh in on Design

All community members are invited to come learn more about the project and share their perspective at an upcoming community forum on Tuesday, March 3, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Somerville High School’s Highlander Forum.  

In addition, throughout this spring and beyond City staff and project architects Perkins Eastman will be hosting a range of opportunities for you to weigh in on design. These opportunities will be posted on this page under events (below) and shared broadly through City and SPS channels.

Previous Updates

January 2026 

The City’s plans for a new school building are progressing. Here’s what is currently happening:  

Mayor Wilson issues statement on the CAG’s recommendation

In late 2025, the Construction Advisory Group (CAG) issued its recommendations to the Mayor on key questions about the new school building project.  

On January 22, Mayor Wilson issued a statement on the CAG’s recommendation affirming his commitment to “to building our community’s new school, with the largest possible capacity, at 115 Sycamore Street as quickly as possible through a clear, transparent process the public can follow.”  

Read the full CAG recommendation and Mayor’s response:  

• Final CAG Recommendation
• Mayor Wilson Statement on CAG recommendation   

Planning and Preliminary Design Work Ongoing  

The City, project manager PMA, and architect Perkins Eastman are  working to advance the project through the next phase of the MSBA’s process. 

This phase is called the feasibility study. During this phase, the project team works to document SPS’s educational requirements for the new building.  

They will also prepare an analysis of the City’s preferred site option for the new school building. As required by MSBA, they will also prepare analyses of non-preferred site options to submit for MSBA review. This phase is currently expected to conclude by late summer 2026. 

Opportunities to Weigh In on Preliminary Design  

City staff and project architects Perkins Eastman will be hosting a range of opportunities for you to weigh in, starting later this winter and running through the spring. 

These opportunities will be posted on this page under events and share broadly through City and SPS channels. 

School Building Project Events 

1. Planning

   Mar ’24 - Oct ’25

   
   Meeting the state’s initial requirements for funding eligibility and forming the project team.

2. Preliminary
   Design

   Nov ’25 - Aug ’26

   
   Documenting educational needs as well as developing early-stage design options and preliminary cost estimates.

3. Schematic
   Design and Funding

   Sept ’26 - Jan ’28

   
   Advancing design, developing the budget, and asking the community to support the project via a Nov ’27 debt exclusion vote.

4. Final
   Design

   Feb ’28 - Dec ’28

   
   Planning for construction by detailing design, soliciting bids, and evaluating contractors.

5. Construction

   Jan ’29 - Dec ’31

   
   Hiring a contractor and getting shovels in the ground to build our new school.

The timeline above represents our best estimate given currently available information and the state's funding process. Timeframes for specific phases are may shift, even as work remains on track for an anticipated completion of construction in late 2031. This timeline will be updated regularly to reflect these shifts.

For a deep-dive on the Massachusetts School Building Authority's school building funding process visit massschoolbuilding.org/building.

Somerville is building a new school at 115 Sycamore Street and working with the Massachusetts School Building Authority get state funding to help cover the cost.  

To maximize opportunities for our students, the City is seeking to build a school with the largest possible capacity the state will support.  

Read Mayor Wilson’s full statement on the project following the CAG’s recommendation.

To get updates about this project directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter.

Want to take a deep dive into the work so far? Find key project documents below.  

School Building Committee (SBC)

• School Building Committee Meeting Materials

Construction Advisory Group (CAG)

• Somerville School Construction Advisory Group (CAG) Final Recommendation
• CAG Meeting Materials
• Community Engagement - New PK-8 Survey Results Analysis and Focus Group Summaries

MBSA Submissions

• Educational Profile Questionnaire (EPQ)
• Initial Compliance Certification