Chicopee's City Council voted 12-1 Tuesday to approve bonding for a new Anna E. Barry Elementary School, clearing the final local hurdle for a $106.7 million project that will relocate the 1963-era school to a new site on Macek Street. The lone dissenting vote, from Ward 2 Councilor Shane Brooks, centered on concerns about heavy traffic near the new location rather than opposition to replacing the aging building itself.
The new two-story school, which will serve roughly 340 students in Pre-Kindergarten through grade 5, is set to rise next to the Szetela Early Childhood Center, which will also undergo renovation, according to MassLive. The Massachusetts School Building Authority has approved a grant of up to $56,640,343 for the project, with funding set at 80% of eligible costs and Chicopee's local share at roughly $49.1 million of the $106.7 million total, according to the Massachusetts School Building Authority.
The current Barry School is on Connell Street and was built in 1963. The Massachusetts School Building Authority has noted accessibility deficiencies at the building. Mayor John Vieau, who also chairs the Chicopee School Committee, has said the city must replace its schools one at a time, per MassLive's report, as Chicopee works through a district of nine elementary schools and one early education center.
Why Macek Street, Not a Park
The Barry School Building Commission, which includes volunteers with engineering and construction backgrounds, evaluated 12 design alternatives, while other proposed sites were found unfeasible; an early proposal at Garrity Grove was abandoned due to deed restrictions, wetland constraints, and state constitutional open-space protections under Article 97, according to the project's reporting in The Reminder.
The school's pipeline through the state authority stretches back years. The authority invited Chicopee into its Eligibility Period in December 2022, approved a Feasibility Study in February 2024, and authorized Schematic Design in February 2026, with student occupancy targeted for September 2029 — a seven-year planning and construction cycle. Had Tuesday's bond vote failed, project architect Bert Gardner told the Chicopee School Committee last month, restarting the state approval process from scratch could have delayed the new school's opening by nine to 12 years and triggered significant construction cost inflation, the architect's warning reported in a separate account from the same outlet.
Granby Road Traffic Becomes the Sticking Point
The new school sits on Macek Street, an offshoot of Granby Road, one of Chicopee's major arteries — and that proximity is exactly what worried Brooks. The Ward 2 councilor argued that Granby Road's vehicle volume makes the location nearly impossible for meeting students' social, emotional, physical, and educational needs, according to MassLive's account of the council debate.
Rachel Roy Williams, a Granby Road area resident and Barry School vice principal, echoed those worries, telling MassLive that traffic in the area is “horrific.” She said a rotary would likely slow vehicles down, but noted pedestrians currently have only one side of the road to walk on, and she questioned how much effect the posted speed-safety signs are actually having.
Those traffic concerns aren't happening in a vacuum. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation has planned a $10.7 million Granby Road corridor project featuring three roundabouts — including a peanut-shaped design at Montgomery Street — along with 8-to-10-foot-wide shared-use paths and flashing pedestrian beacons near the future school site, according to MassDOT. In August, the City Council separately approved a $1.2 million bond to replace aging water mains and valves along Granby Road and Montgomery Street, with city officials noting the ground disturbance from roundabout construction made it necessary to swap out fragile existing water lines, per The Reminder's coverage of that vote.
Educators Say They're Ready for the Challenge
Despite the construction years ahead, Barry School Principal Kate Lambert struck an optimistic note, telling MassLive that educators approach challenges with a problem-solving mindset. The current building's issues go beyond its layout and missing elevator — it also has asbestos and structural concerns on top of its ADA noncompliance, according to the same report.
The new Barry Elementary project has an overall budget of $106.7 million, per a Massachusetts School Building Authority project memo. The school currently serves 331 students in kindergarten through grade five at its Connell Street building. Chicopee Public Schools is navigating years of overlapping construction before students can walk into their new building in 2029.
