Peabody City Council Unanimously Authorizes $1.2 Million Bond for School Roofs

PEABODY — June 11, 2026 — Peabody's City Council unanimously authorized $1.2 million in borrowing for school roof replacements and approved four fund transfers totaling more than $758,000 at its June 11 session. The bond order, introduced jointly by Councilor Gamache and Councilor Peach and carried 10-0, will fund new roofs at South School and West School; a prior bond order covering the same buildings is in the process of being formally rescinded through the state municipal finance office. The council also approved a $296,525 transfer to match state and federal grants for cybersecurity upgrades at two water treatment plants and required dam repairs at Spring Pond and Winona, leveraging $511,500 in total project funding, along with $221,000 for bike path easements from Lieutenant Ross Park to the Route 1 bridge, and $150,000 in free cash for equipment on two fire pumpers due in August. In a move flagged as urgent, Councilor Manning-Martin won referral of the city's subsidized housing inventory report — which shows Peabody at 10.56 percent — to the Industrial and Community Development Committee, warning that projected unit losses through 2027 could push the city to roughly 10.3 percent, dangerously close to the 10 percent Chapter 40B threshold.