Faced with rising construction costs, Trinity Area School Board voted Wednesday to move ahead with school construction projects totaling $72.3 million.
Among the projects are construction of a new intermediate school – which will be built as an addition to Trinity Middle School – and renovations to the middle school. The district also is moving forward with an improvement project at Trinity West Elementary School at an estimated cost of $1.8 million.
The construction and renovation projects will cost an estimated $8 million to $10 million more than the project costs originally approved by the school board in November 2021.
In all, the projects are estimated to total $72,331,369, with the middle school renovation and intermediate school addition now estimated to cost $70,522,569.
Before the special voting meeting, the district held a public hearing, where Daniel Engen, president of the architectural and design firm DRAW Collective, pointed to factors that led to the increased costs.
The most significant, he said, are substantial increases in material costs since the fall and increase in labor costs.
“Essentially, it’s very simple. In our current environment, it’s all material and labor escalation that we’ve gotten sucked into, unfortunately, since November, when original numbers were set for the project,” said Engen.
Engen said his firm has attempted to control the cost overrun by reducing the square footage of the new intermediate school building, reducing the amount of space to be renovated, removing scope items, and simplifying design elements and materials.
“And still, here we are today with challenges on the cost,” said Engen.
Superintendent Dr. Michael Lucas said he was disappointed but not surprised about the cost escalations, and is comfortable with the architectural firm’s and the district’s efforts to address rising costs.
“To know that we will move forward by cutting out the extraneous without sacrificing improvements makes me feel comfortable with the district’s decision to build, and excited for Trinity Area School District’s future,” said Lucas.
“Our goal as educators is always to provide students with a quality, 21st-century education in a safe environment that invests in teaching and learning,” said Lucas. “This project will help us meet this goal.”