Walls Crumbling At Swampscott Elementary School

SWAMPSCOTT (CBS) - At a Swampscott elementary school, the floors are buckling and the walls are crumbling.

School officials say the Hadley Elementary School is falling apart, and just last week the school was shut down for the day because of crumbling plaster that possibly contained asbestos.

"We have to do something about a dinosaur of a building," school committee member Amy O'Connor said.

The school is 104 years old and in desperate need of repair. Superintendent Pamela Angelakis said the town has gotten approval and support from the state for a new building that would incorporate all three elementary schools into one.

"We need this building really badly," Angelakis said. "Our buildings are not compliant."

The new building could cost residents as much as $31 million, which amounts to about $450 per household annually for the next 20 years, she said.

A special vote is scheduled at town meeting on October 6 to decide if money for a new building will be on the ballot in November.

"No matter what, our taxpayers are going to be taxed in order to either manage old schools or build a new school, and we strongly feel money is best spent on a new school," O'Connor said.

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