Milford Building Committee Votes to Launch Construction Manager Procurement for New High School

MILFORD — April 15, 2026 — Milford's high school building committee voted to launch construction manager procurement and received a stark lesson in MSBA reimbursement math at its April 15 meeting. Using Agawam High School as a case study, owner-project manager James showed that Agawam's stated 65 percent reimbursement rate translated to a net reimbursement of just 43.7 percent of total project cost once $23 million in ineligible site costs, $10 million in ineligible building areas, and a construction cost cap of $550 per square foot — against an actual cost of $945 per square foot — were factored out, with the effective district penalty on any excluded space approaching twice its direct construction cost due to a 1.5 grossing factor. The committee voted unanimously to authorize preparation of a construction manager at-risk request for services, with a motion by Patrick and a second by Mitch. HMFH Architects presented an enrollment capacity study concluding that a 7-through-12 grade configuration would render 73,000 square feet of the new building 100 percent ineligible for reimbursement, signaling the committee intends to formally drop that option at a future vote. Assistant Superintendent Josh presented a revised Chapter 74 vocational program list that removes engineering, biotechnology, advanced manufacturing, and information systems networking, and adds veterinary science, robotics and automation, environmental science technology, medical assisting, and public safety — reducing overlap with Blackstone Valley Tech from seven programs to three.