PLAINFIELD — Voters will be asked to approve a $500,000 bond to help fund the renovation of the middle school wing at Plainfield Elementary School during the annual School Meeting.

The proposal calls for renovating roughly 2,400 square feet of Plainfield Elementary School and adding 400 square feet of new classroom space to make it better suited for middle school students, Superintendent Sydney Leggett said.

This includes adding a STEAM lab that focuses on hands-on and project-based learning for the subjects of science, technology, engineering, arts and math.

The middle school wing would also gain its own entryway and a multi-purpose space.

The overall estimated cost of the project is $1.5 million. However, if voters approve the proposal this year, about two-thirds of the cost would be covered by a major grant.

“What we really want to emphasize is we really want to promote STEAM learning,” Leggett said. She also said the renovations will give middle school students “a little bit of autonomy as they’re reaching that age, where they have a space where they’re not still feeling like elementary schoolers.”

If voters approve the bond, construction will likely begin in summer of 2026.

The proposal was scaled back after the Plainfield and Cornish school boards decided in January not to go forward with a plan to combine the two middle school programs.

Initial plans called for adding around 2,000 square feet of space for middle school students.

“Really it just came down to finances. The cost of the program was just too much,” Cornish School Board Chairman Justin Ranney said. “It was an avenue for us to improve programming and potentially save taxpayer money here. I think if it had been even close to cost neutral it would have been something we would have been very excited about.”

Under the proposal, Cornish would have paid tuition for its middle school students to attend Plainfield.

There are currently 78 sixth, seventh and eighth graders in Plainfield and 42 in Cornish, Leggett said.

The Cornish School Board determined that it would not save money because the district would still have to pay the same costs to maintain its building, as well as programs including art and music.

“All of those items that are spread out through pre-K through 8 are then just compacted to pre-K through 5,” Ranney said. “On top of that you’re paying the tuition for 6, 7 and 8.”

The decision not to combine grades 6 to 8 into one school came after a study of about two years by the two school boards.

Both districts operate under separate supervisory unions but share some resources, including administrators like Leggett, who serves as superintendent for both communities.

There are 261 students in the Plainfield district, which includes grades kindergarten through 12.

In Cornish, there are 184 students in grades preschool through 12.

Taxpayers in both districts pay tuition for students in grades 9 to 12 to attend high school in other school districts.

The decision not to merge middle schools isn’t the end of the two districts’ talks of further collaboration.

The two districts are in the first year of a three-year study to consider combining into one cooperative district. If the cooperative comes to fruition, the middle school discussion will become part of a broader discussion about how to split grades between the Cornish and Plainfield buildings.

“We’d have to look at both schools and see what the best grade configurations would be at that time,” Leggett said.

Meanwhile, Plainfield is moving forward with the renovation project now in part because the majority of the funding comes from a $1 million New Hampshire Charitable Foundation grant from a local, anonymous donor.

“If the voters do not approve it, it will be opened up to other schools and districts to apply for,” said Jenny Ramsey, who chairs the Plainfield School Board.

While Plainfield would still have a chance at getting that funding, it would not be a guarantee like it is during this budget cycle.

Taxpayers would be responsible for the remaining $500,000, which would be financed by a five-year bond.

“We’re hoping that it allows for better academic programming for the students, but it also updates an older area of the building,” Ramsey said.

Plainfield voters also will consider a $8.7 million general operating budget, a slight decrease from the current year’s, Leggett said.

Still, “the increase to taxes will still be a little over 3%,” she said, citing a reduction in revenue from state and federal governments.

Cornish’s proposed budget is $5.5 million and voters will also consider a new collective bargaining agreement with the Cornish Educators Association that totals about $383,000 from the current fiscal year through fiscal year 2027 to 2028.

The tax rate increase is expected to be similar to Plainfield’s if the collective bargaining agreement passes.

Cornish’s School Meeting will begin at 1 p.m. Saturday, March 8, at Cornish Elementary School; polls will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Plainfield’s School Meeting will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday, March 15, at Plainfield Elementary School.

Ballot voting will take place on Tuesday, March 11, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Plainfield School gymnasium.

Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misstated the size of the bond voters are authorizing. It is $500,000.