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— Quincy Massachusetts News by Quincy Quarry News – News, Opinion and Commentarys
Learning Center entrance lobby
A Quincy Quarry News Exclusive image
The DeCristofaro Learning Center for public school students on the Autism Spectrum was dedicated on Sunday even though several dozen students are not expected to be moved to the 350 student capacity facility until after the first of the year.
Then again, with election day fast approaching, Quincy Mayor Thomas P. Koch surely wanted to score yet another pre-election photo op, especially one not on his campaign fund’s dime.
As for the facility itself, Quincy Quarry personnel assigned to the cover the dedication was surprised to find the facility well along into punch list status, the facility itself attractive as well as presumably well-designed for functionality, and the like.
Dedication buffet line
A Quincy Quarry News exclusive image
In any event, the dedication event itself was duly organized, including a deli platter style buffet line featuring a choice of mini-sub roast beef or ham sandwiches, cheese and crackers, fruit, and cookies that was all but assuredly arranged by City of Quincy Director of Operations and events planner Helen “Wheels” Murphy.
After all, one should expect as much for the food provided at this de facto campaign event.
As for the school itself, the renovation of the building to service students on the Autism spectrum was originally projected to completed and thus ready for students in the Fall of 2020 at a total cost of less than $14 million, including the purchase price of the property, before the project was hit with many fold renovation cost overruns as well as years of delay.
DeCrisotofaro Leaning Center cafeteria
A Quincy Quarry News exclusive image
Specifically, the originally touted to be only $5 million cost for renovation work subsequently first almost tripled to $14 million and then metastasized o $35 million, a near seven-fold renovation cost increase from original plan, and so working out to a $43 million total project cost projection. $43 million at this point anyway.
Needless to say, given events to date, it is only reasonable to expect that additional costs will hit the fan and so further increase the current $43 million cost, a figure already triple the original all-inclusive project cost projection, once all of the bills are paid.
Mayor Koch, center left, hanging in the cafeteria
A Quincy Quarry News exclusive image
Additionally, the design capacity for students has more than doubled from roughly 150 local students originally projected to eligible for serving at the learning center to 350 students.
The Koch Maladministration’s rational for the more than doubling the capacity of the leaning center?
The maladministration expects that nearby school districts will pay tuition to Quincy Public Schools District to service their students on the Autism Spectrum instead of placing them elsewhere at assumed to be higher cost at facilities often at greater distances away from these anticipated out of town students’ residences.
Up in smoke …
Image via cheetsheet.com
Needless to say, this doubling in capacity poses adverse overhead cost concerns if the facility is not filled to at least close to its capacity.
Concerns for this expectation include that this impending Quincy facility has no track record.
Costs concern are further exacerbated by the fact that it would appear that the Koch Maladministration’s thin projection of the school giving rise to a $350,000 operational cost saving to the Quincy Public Schools Distinct does not include an only proper cost accounting consideration of the City of Quincy’s debt service expense on the roughly $23 million in local municipal bond debt incurred to fund the city’s share of the cost of building the school.
The Koch Maladministration’s financial team …
An old Columbia Pictures image
Quick and dirty, figure on a local annual municipal bond debt service expense on the order of $1.15 million not duly factored into the Koch Maladministration’s cost projections.
Further, the city’s financial brain trust has not duly imputed costs incurred given that use of roughly $20 million in mostly federal funding that could have instead been spent on other City of Quincy needs.
As such, figure another million in expenses not duly imputed into the learning center’s cost projections given the use of $20 million dollars in federal funds on it could have instead been spent on other things that Mayor Koch will all but assuredly instead be funding via local bond debt issuance(s).
Quincy Quarry News follows the money
An oxycom.com
In other words, a proper cost accounting of things would suggest that the DeCristofaro Center will, best case, be running $1.8 million in the red versus the current practice of out-placing students on the Autism Spectrum at already existing special education schools elsewhere, schools with proven records of long servicing the needs of students on the spectrum.
If, however, the expected tuition revenue from other school districts placing students at Quincy’s school for students on the spectrum falls short, the resultant cost imposed upon local taxpayers will only worsen.
Typical political tactics.
Original estimated $13.5 million cost has blossomed to the latest estimate to date of $43 million. Mayor Koch will not let facts like this get in the way of getting re-elected. He has more brilliant ideas like this for projects he wants to get started on. Quincy taxpayers have nothing else they would like to do with their money.