Rhode Island Divided on Coming McCoy Stadium Demolition

It’s official. McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket will be demolished to make way for a brand-new high school.

Gov. Dan McKee, Rhode Island Department of Education Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green, Senate Education Chair Sandra Cano, Mayor Don Grebien, School Committee Chairman Gerard Charbonneau, Superintendant Patricia Royal, and state, municipal and school leaders gathered at Joseph Jenks Middle School on Wednesday to discuss the project, and the future of McCoy Stadium has locals divided.

Ahead of one of the largest state projects in Rhode Island history, McKee said, “Expanding access to world-class learning spaces is part of our plan to improve student outcomes statewide because we know that the conditions of the schools our students and educators learn and teach in make a difference.”

Plans for the New High School in Pawtucket

According to the Rhode Island Department of Education, the new construction is part of RIDE’s School Building Authority Necessity of School Construction designation, which allows local education agencies who apply to receive a portion of their state aid as pay-as-you-go funding, which lets them begin construction almost immediately.

Pawtucket received a $50 million PayGo check from the statewide bond and will help the city reduce its bond from $330 million to $280 million.

The school will be completed in September 2028, housing approximately 2,200 students. It will house high-demand career and technical education (CTE) programs and be one of the state’s green schoolhouses. The Act on Climate Law and the Green Building Act ensures that projects conserve natural resources, consume less energy, are easier to maintain, and provide an enhanced school facility for students.

The Community Responds to the Demolition of McCoy Stadium

The plan will update education in Pawtucket, but it comes at the loss of a Rhode Island landmark, and people are divided.

“A new high school is definitely needed,” said one Facebook user.

“It breaks my heart, I grew up there,” said another.

Many Rhode Islanders grew up at McCoy and are sad to see it go, but come 2028, McCoy will be a distant memory.