Local Cost ~ State Paid Cost ~ Total Cost
$9,010,000 ~ $24,990,000 ~ $34,000,000
$9,513,500 ~ $26,386,500 ~ $35,900,000
$18,523,500 ~ $51,376,500 ~ $69,900,000
Panel Gets Estimate on School Construction
by Megan Bard - published by The Day - April 26, 2007
Griswold — It could cost up to $70 million to build a new elementary school and to renovate and add onto the existing middle school.
The cost estimates for the projects — $35.9 million for the new school and $34 million for the middle school work — were revealed Wednesday night during a special School Building Committee meeting. The estimates include everything associated with the projects.
Vice Chairman John Taylor said he really hadn't known what to expect.
First Selectwoman Anne P. Hatfield, a committee member, said she was surprised.
“It is much more than I expected, but I'm not familiar with the cost of construction,” Hatfield said, adding, “it's really up to the townspeople to determine whether they agree.”
The committee will host the first of two public hearings on the projects at 7 p.m. on May 3 in the middle school auditorium. A second hearing is tentatively scheduled for May 18. Taxpayers will vote on the proposal at a referendum tentatively scheduled for June 12.
The building committee has worked for months to create conceptual design plans for the two schools, which have become overburdened by an increasing student enrollment and aged facilities. New Britain-based architectural firm Kaestle Boos Associates Inc. has worked with the committee to complete the designs.
Originally the committee thought it would be more cost-efficient to thoroughly renovate the elementary school and build two new academic wings. Last week, Charles W. Boos, chairman and CEO of the firm, said it would be less expensive to demolish the existing school in phases and build a new facility on the site.
On Wednesday night, Boos provided committee members with information showing that to renovate the elementary school could cost $38.3 million, or 6 percent more than building a new school. The higher costs are associated with the amount of work needed to renovate the school; Boos said only the frame is salvageable.
In addition to being more expensive, Boos said it was almost assured that if the town decided to go with the more pricy option, the state would not reimburse the cost.
As of now, if taxpayers approve the projects prior to June 30, Griswold is eligible to reimbursed by the state for up to 73.5 percent of the project cost. There is a possibility that as of July 1 the reimbursement rate would decrease, as proposed by Gov. M. Jodi Rell. Local legislators have told finance board officials that this may not be the case, however.
Boos said that if the projects are approved at referendum, construction on the middle school could start in April 2008 and be completed by August 2010. Construction on the new elementary school would be done in phases, with the first beginning in April 2009 with the demolition of a portion of the building and the entire project completed by August 2011.
During construction at the elementary school, the fourth grade would be temporarily relocated to the middle school.
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