To the editor:

Portsmouth voters keep asking why the bond on this year’s ballot calls for renovating our schools instead of building new, as several neighboring districts have done. Here is the part of the answer that surprises people: A new middle school would mean losing the theater and gym we have today.

State regulations size a new school strictly by enrollment. A new Portsmouth Middle School would be smaller overall than the one we have. It would have a smaller gym. And it would replace our recently refurbished theater with a “cafetorium.”

Those aren’t just school facilities — both the gym and the theater are used by the community. With a new school, we would be trading them away permanently, and we would be paying a premium to do it.

Building a new middle school in Portsmouth has been estimated to cost $90 million to $120 million. Many of the new schools being built in our area are coming in with much higher price tags. The bond before you is capped at $41 million, with 35% of eligible project costs reimbursed by the state.

The bond funds long-deferred safety and building improvements, including modernization of the eighth-grade wing at the middle school that will show us what updated classrooms can do for Portsmouth students. The town council approves the projects before any money is borrowed.

The approach we are recommending leads to safe, modern schools while limiting the impact on our taxpayers. It costs less, and we keep what we already own and use.

Please vote “Yes” on Question 6.

Brett Fox, Chair

Fred Faerber

Karen McDaid

Capital Planning Subcommittee

Portsmouth School Committee