Holyoke is taking steps that could ultimately lead to either renovations of the existing H.B. Lawrence Elementary School or potentially construction of a brand new school at 156 Cabot Street.
On April 14, the City of Holyoke and Holyoke Public Schools submitted a Statement of Interest (SOI) to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) for a core building project for Lawrence School.
The SOI is the first step of many to enter the MSBA’s program for school building construction, additions, and/or renovations. According to the MSBA website, an SOI “allows districts to inform the MSBA of deficiencies that may exist in a local school facility and how those deficiencies inhibit the delivery of the district’s educational program.”
Before the SOI was submitted, the Holyoke City Council voted in support of the application on March 17, and the Holyoke School Committee voted in support on March 23. Submitting an SOI does not require a financial commitment at this time. It simply allows the process to move forward through the review stage.
Interim Superintendent Anthony Soto and Mayor Joshua Garia recommended the submission of an SOI to the City Council and School Committee for the following reasons:
Holyoke’s goal dating back to 2016 was to open a new middle school for every Holyoke student to ensure equity of opportunity and experiences for all middle school students. Holyoke partially met this goal with the opening of the Dr. William R. Peck School in August 2025.
The current H.B. Lawrence School is the district’s building in the poorest condition and is ill-equipped to meet the needs of a modern education.
The project is expected to be financially feasible at this time, in part because the Peck construction project came in significantly under budget, and because there would likely be space for this new project in the city’s anticipated debt schedule in the next 30-40 years. Mayor Garcia is working collaboratively with city leaders to assess the city’s complete infrastructure needs at this time.
The MSBA is now considering Holyoke’s SOI, with a decision expected on or after January 2027. If the project is accepted, Holyoke would then need to decide whether to enter a 6-9 month eligibility period that would include a number of steps that include appropriating funding for a feasibility assessment. A feasibility study is estimated to be $2 million, of which Holyoke would be responsible for 20% of the cost, or an estimated $400,000.
If the project is approved and Holyoke decides to proceed, the earliest that renovations or construction of a new school could be completed would be fall 2033. If Lawrence School became a middle school, then Sullivan Middle School would be transformed into an elementary school, and the district would need to redraw school boundary lines for a portion of the city.