September 29, 2026 By Carol Britton Meyer
The Oct. 29 Hingham Special Town Meeting warrant will include three articles – two related to funding the proposed Plymouth River and South School roof projects and the other related to amending the scope of the earlier approved Hingham High School roof and HVAC design project, which is not asking voters to approve additional funding. For more information, go to https://www.hingham-ma.gov/
Funding for the Plymouth River and South School roof projects is contingent on a two-thirds vote of approval at the Special Town Meeting under separate warrant articles and a subsequent majority vote of approval on debt exclusion questions at the ballot box to fund each proposal.
Two debt exclusion questions are included on the Nov. 3 special town election ballot – the same date as the state election – to fund the two roofs. This will be a separate ballot from the state ballot that lists the candidates for office and several ballot questions. (A sample ballot will be posted on the town clerk webpage on the town website in the near future).
A debt exclusion is a temporary property tax increase to pay for a specific capital project over a certain number of years and requires voter approval as described above – at a Town Meeting or Special Town Meeting and also at the ballot box.
If a warrant article fails to pass at a Town/Special Town Meeting, the related ballot question(s) remain on the ballot because there would not be time to remove them, but the results wouldn’t count.
If the warrant article passes at the Special Town Meeting, it must also gain a majority vote at the ballot box in order for the elementary roof projects to move forward.
The estimate for the South School roof at this time is about $8.26 million, and the estimate for the Plymouth River roof project, about $16.06 million. Both those figures are subject to change.
The select board voted recently to submit the schematic design and associated documents for both proposed roof projects to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) for partial reimbursement following a presentation by School Building Committee Chair Angela Thedinga.
The Special Town Meeting date coincides with the MSBA’s deadlines related to partial reimbursement under its Accelerated Repair Program for the elementary roof projects, at an estimated rate of 36.89%.
The total budget for the South School roof at this time is about $8.6 million, and the total budget for the Plymouth River roof project, about $16.4 million.
Both projects were submitted to the MSBA in spring 2025 and accepted into the Accelerated Repair Program in October 2025. The MSBA assigned the Owners Project Manager and designer firms in January 2026, and design work has been underway since that time.
A tax calculator will be available on the town website to help property owners determine what the impact of these two projects would be on their property taxes if the warrant articles pass and there is a majority vote in favor at the ballot box.
“Community members will have access to the estimator to understand the year one estimated property tax impact of the proposed projects,” Assistant Town Administrator for Finance Katie Dugan told the Hingham Anchor in response to an email inquiry. “The comment in the warrant will show year 1 and year 10 and average borrowing over the first 10 years when the debt service declines due to level principal.”
Information sessions will be held the first three weeks in October at the time when requested Vote-by Mail ballots will be arriving at voters’ homes, Dugan said, noting that the figures related to the cost of the two proposed projects will not appear in the debt exclusion ballot questions. The information sessions are designed to provide cost information and an opportunity for citizens to ask questions, make comments, or share concerns.
Paper Special Town Meeting warrants are mailed to every Hingham household. Voters are encouraged to become familiar with the warrant articles and other information in the booklet before the meeting and to bring the warrant with them. Voters have the final say on the three warrant articles.
For further Special Town Meeting information, including check-in, parking, and accessibility, go to https://www.hingham-ma.gov/