Once again, the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District had the middle school replacement project on its agenda, but only as a discussion item. There was no voting on the matter during the March 23 meeting.
The possibility of building a new middle school has been a topic for several years, and a feasibility study was done recommending a new school building to replace CF Patton. The original cost estimate for replacement was $120 million, but that increased to $139 million after further studies. Now it has gone up to possibly $166 million, considering the possibility of delaying the project a few years. That last figure of $166 million came from a discussion and presentation during the work session two weeks ago.
The board solicited bids for a schematic design, and Breslin Architects was chosen. Members of the administration and several board members were part of the group working with Breslin, according to Director Rashi Akki.
“Along with the understanding came the fact that we had now gone from $120 million to about $140 million,” Akki said. “That additional cost had to be part of the project just because of the amount of ground we were covering to make this project feasible. So, here we are at this junction with lots of understanding of what this project entails.”
She noted that the district was still paying for the high school renovations of several years ago. That debt, she said, would be paid off by 2031.
“The intent is to figure out where we stand fiscally in terms of how to accommodate the project at this time,” Akki said.
During the work session two weeks ago, a modified plan was discussed. That plan called for things to be done in phases, with one phase being the moving of the tennis courts, the baseball fields, and reconfiguring traffic. That would cost a little more than $7 million. That phase could be completed by 2029, and moved the projected start date for building the new school to 2031. However, pushing construction back a few years would increase labor costs, bringing the total cost estimated to be more than $166 million and possibly leading to the need for taxes to be raised more than allowed by the Act 1 index. That would lead to the need for a referendum.
During the discussion of how things stand now, Director of Facilities James Whitesel addressed the matter of possibly just renovating the middle school. That followed a request for an explanation by Board President Victoria Barratta.
Whitesel said that would be awkward, at best. He said the structure of the school, built in the 1970s, has many load-bearing walls and an air conditioning zone system. That system makes it difficult to renovate because there are zones that fan out through ductwork, which would mean there would need to be a phased renovation, so students would have to be moved around if renovations were done with students in school.
Whitesell added he has worked on school renovations before that were done while students were in class, and that those projects were challenging.
“When it came to renovating our middle school in my previous district, we decided not to do occupied construction. There’s just a lot of things that can impact the educational program when you have contractors working on the premises,” he said.
A vote to move forward with the project as modified could come in April.
Before the discussion, several members of the community, mainly from Chadds Ford Township, spoke, calling for rethinking the project because of the cost.
Mike Ashmore said he is opposed to proceeding with the project, “And I strongly urge the board to hold off on any decisions to move forward unless and until full details of the proposed plan are released so the public has ample time to view the details and provide input, and the board has sufficient time to consider alternatives.”
Eric Gartner, also from Chadds Ford, said he attended a meeting last year in which her heard many professionals talk about the need for the board to listen to resident concerns. He, too, has concerns, he said.
“The sole source contract from a design company whose profit motive was apparent in their feasibility study recommendation to destroy a well-functioning building. Spurious reasoning in the feasibility study cited by this board, such as the need for sunlight even though the reports given stated natural wavelength lights are equally sufficient at a fraction of the price,” Gartner said.
He added that other stated needs for a new school could be addressed by already existing contracts. The only exception to that, Gartner said, was the ability to widen hallways.
Another Chadds Ford resident, Bill Grosskopf, said he wanted renovations to the existing school to be considered more seriously.
“I think you should look at that more than ever, given the escalating costs of the school replacement option that you’ve been pursuing,” Grosskopf said. “My opinion last year was not only based on costs and the impact on our taxes and property values, but also because replacement is the most damaging to the environment.”
Another Chadds Ford resident, Mark Stookey, said the middle school project has seen “dramatic changes in budget and schedule. I find it remarkable that the district is not now seriously considering other options, including renovating the existing building, given the cost and delays. I urge you to take advantage of the current pause to carefully examine the alternatives to a new building. I believe it’s almost certain that voters will need to approve a new school in a referendum, and I believe it’s unlikely that such a referendum will pass.”
Other business
• As expected, the board voted to award a contract to Green Ridge Landscaping to install a new native garden at Unionville High School for $9,930.
• School directors also voted to award a $33,350 contract to Hajoca for the purchase of replacement water fountains/hydration stations.
Both votes were unanimous, 8-0. Director Erin Talbert was not in attendance.
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
