News Story

Rich Kirby, Patch Staff | Posted Tue, Apr 20, 2021 at 8:25 pm ET

Danbury City Council Approves $99M Academy, Without Referendum

The Danbury City Council voted to move forward with plans for the Danbury Academy. No public referendum will be called.

Occupancy of the Danbury career academy is likely to begin August 2024. (Thompson & Bender)

DANBURY, CT — The City Council voted unanimously to move forward with the $99 million career academy for students in grades 6-12, to be located within the Summit development.

The council voted Monday night not to put the project in front of a public referendum. An executive order issued by the governor at the start of the coronavirus pandemic empowered municipal authorities to bypass some town-wide votes in the interest of coronavirus safety.

Farley Santos, one of two on the council who voted in favor of the referendum, said he would have "preferred this going before the public, as stated in our charter. I think we could have pulled that off."

Occupancy is likely to begin August 2024. School Superintendent Sal Pascarella said he anticipates class sizes in the existing school system will continue to get bigger until the Academy can take on some of the student population.