To whittle down the state budget, Gov. Deval Patrick, made cuts this week that hit Andover.
Money pledged for the aging Bancroft Elementary School was cut from $200,000 to $150,000, and a $150,000 budget appropriation for Andover Youth Services was cut entirely.
State Rep. Barbara L'Italien said she and Rep. Barry Finegold hope to convince their colleagues to override the decisions.
"The good news is that (the Bancroft money) didn't get cut out right," L'Italien said. "We're assured of $150,000, and I'll be pushing to get that back up with a veto override. The good news is that it's an amount of money to offset the extraordinary costs associated with Bancroft ... it will help the town's budget and help keep the Bancroft School open and safe."
"I will try and override the Andover Youth Services appropriation cut as well," she said. "AYS helps serve a critical role to the youth in Andover."
L'Italien, who has met with Bancroft's school building committee, said the committee has "a binder that's about three inches thick of all the things that have to be done to Bancroft."
State money for Bancroft would help pay for a recent study of the building's conditions needed to see whether it should undergo major repairs or be replaced. It would also help pay for repairs and preventative maintenance, she said.
"It's money to pay for all the structural repairs that we have made and are making for the school, to stabilize the building to keep it open as long as we can," said Plant and Facilities Department Director Joe Piantedosi, a member of Bancroft's building committee.
L'Italien said the Legislature must override the governor's decisions by July 31 so residents will know within a week how Andover's budget items fared.
Overrides must be approved by a two-thirds majority in both the state House and Senate.
"I believe that if it's going to be brought up, it will be successful," she said of the Andover overrides. "Generally, in the House, it's never been a difficult thing to override these kind of cuts."
Bancroft, built in 1969, is undergoing additional structural repairs this summer, Piantedosi said.
"Some in-house work will carry in to September and October, but will be done after hours, on Saturdays and after school," he said.
"A lot of the recommendations that the structural engineer has made to us to stabilize the building, we're erring on the safe side. We're not taking any risks and doing everything possible to keep school open as long as possible."
This summer crews have been doing structural work around Bancroft's cafetorium and kitchen serving area, he said.
"We've come a long way. We've been trying to add some seismic capability to the building, to try and give the building some additional support in case there was a mild earthquake."
