Hingham Select Board Delays Vote on $770,000 School Boiler and Repair Article

HINGHAM — March 3, 2026 — Hingham Select Board delays vote on a $770,000 school repairs article while facing a $97.4 million capital plan for FY27. Capital Outlay Committee Chair Mike Donovan told a joint session of the Select Board, School Committee, and Advisory Committee that the gross five-year capital figure includes $52.6 million for school roof and HVAC projects — net of anticipated 30-to-40 percent MSBA reimbursement — and that the committee is recommending two additional unassigned fund balance draws for a $1.7 million high school fire alarm replacement and an East Elementary HVAC overhaul. Facilities Director Matt Mian reported that Hingham High School's 27-year-old boilers have failed repeatedly, with boiler number one repaired five times in two months at "astronomical" confined-space welding costs, and that $351,975 of the current year's $500,000 extraordinary repairs account is already spent. Acting chair Liz Klein deferred the Article S vote to the next Select Board meeting, pending review of a Crowley Engineering report and itemized capital requests; a critical unresolved question — whether replacing the boilers with natural gas units would jeopardize MSBA funding for the roof projects — remained unanswered as of the March 3 meeting, with school officials awaiting a written response from a senior MSBA official.