By a 7-to-1 vote, with Councilor Andrew Raposo abstaining, the council approved borrowing $29.8 million to purchase the former Bishop Connolly High School.
The school department plans to use the facility to house its early childhood education program.
Interim deputy superintendent Elizabeth Legault told the council that the move makes sense from both educational and financial points of view.
Councilor Christopher Peckham was the lone dissenting vote on the issue. He expressed concern that city revenue will plateau in the coming years and that taxpayers cannot afford to take on more debt.
The school department will also need to spend an additional $20 million in renovations to the facility. It hopes to complete the sale with the Diocese of Fall River by the first of the year.
