New Hanover school set to finish under budget
New Hanover school set to finish under budget
HANOVER — It’s been a long time coming, but the new, 156,000-square-foot Hanover High School building on Cedar Street is on track to open its doors in September, $11 million under budget, officials say.
The $50 million building, to be surrounded by a new field and athletic facilities, is being touted as an environmentally friendly, flexible learning center with 48 “teaching stations,’’ or classrooms, that can be expanded or contracted to adjust to educational needs, as well as common areas large enough to host community meetings from time to time.
It will hold 800 students, according to specifications, substantially more than the 600-plus now enrolled in the existing building on the same parcel, officials said.
“This building is going to be fantastic,’’ said Chris Martin, chairman of the building committee. “There are a million things I like about it. And 11 of us have worked so long on it, it’s our baby.’’
The new school is coming in $11 million under the amount originally appropriated before the economy tanked, Martin and others said, because of bids that came in 17 percent less than expected and lower interest rates.
He said it’s a poignant time for supporters who have championed construction of the new school for a decade and weathered a series of political, legal and malicious storms to see it through.
Residents first tried to jump-start a renovation project in the late 1970s for the dated, 1958 building but had no luck, Martin said. Then, the initial property tax-limit override vote to pay for a new building failed in 2001 by just 18 votes, he said.
A new wave of voters agreed to build a new school in 2007, but then a protracted legal challenge raised by union carpenters stalled construction. The court battle included allegations that general contractor Callahan Inc. was illegally selected for the job, the costs of which are being reimbursed at a rate of nearly 50 percent by the Massachusetts School Building Authority.
In court papers, the plaintiffs contended that Callahan secured the contract based on misleading information in its prequalification documents that claimed construction of Andover High School as its previous school building experience. The town countered that the company was involved at the very end of that project.
The disagreement delayed construction by about five months and cost the town $400,000, said Selectman Dan Pallotta. But the case was eventually decided in the town’s favor, after making its way up to the state Supreme Judicial Court.
More recently, as workers toiled through the winter on the project, a trio of underage vandals broke into the new building in late February and went on a two-day rampage, which included pouring concrete adhesives down toilets, according to police.
Walls throughout the school were spray painted with graffiti, tools and boxes were tipped over, locks were ripped off doors, and uninstalled windows smashed, said Martin and Pallotta, who have worked closely together on the project.
All damage was eventually covered by Callahan’s insurance policy, they said.
“But that broke my heart,’’ Martin said. It’s been a long road, but both he and Pallotta said all eyes are trained on the finish line now as Callahan presses to deliver the finished building to the town by June 1.
From that point, school officials would have three months to fit the building with the latest technology, furnishings, treatments, and day-to-day essentials, before students arrive for the start of school in the fall.
“The new school is beyond state-of-the-art,’’ said Pallotta. “It will be the nicest school on the South Shore.’’
Key to the new design is an open cafeteria/commons space that will be the hub of the school, Martin said. German-designed shades schoolwide will allow the sunlight in, aiding energy efficiency, while also shielding students’ eyes from glare.
Climate control will be much better, he said, than in the existing building, where students often have to wear their jackets in class to keep warm, or boil in hot weather.
The new school has been designed to support eight pod areas, each with six teaching stations that can be reconfigured as needed. Spaces are designed with a sense of community, whether it’s a gathering of students during school, or the community after hours, officials said. There is wireless computer access throughout the building that can be shut on and off at will, Martin said.
There are also 55 security cameras, he said, which are a concession to the times.
Once the town takes ownership of the new school, it will have two days to remove any items it wants from the old building before Callahan begins demolition.
School and town officials are organizing a scholarship fund-raiser, in conjunction with Hanover Day, to auction off items saved from the school.
No comments:
Post a Comment