Manchester battles COVID-19 pandemic and inflation for new school
It took a lot to get to from Point A to Point B for Sunday’s new Manchester High School groundbreaking.A lot as in dodging a pandemic roadblock, absorbing shocks from inflation and supply-chain potholes, and maneuvering over design and construction speedbumps.
But nearly three years after voters in the 1250-student school district approved financing for the new high school project, it is finally moving along.
On Sunday, about 130 people helped plunge shovels into the ground to mark its ceremonial beginning.It’s a start Manchester Local School District Superintendent Shaun Morgan hopes will prove a lot smoother than what’s in the rear-view mirror.
“We are going to be building a very functional building, but we also understand … we can’t be extravagant,” Morgan said on Monday.
Getting to point B
In the buildup to the November 2019 bond and tax levy, the district posted its intentions in a fact sheet on its web site. The bond levy would pay for $34 million in facilities improvements, including a new high school with a 500-seat auditorium, a new competition gym and space for 425 students.
Voters bought into the vision, approving it 1,569 to 1,396 , or 52.9% to 47.1%. Previous efforts to fund improvement projects in 2009 and 2016 had failed.
The district, still headed at the time by former Superintendent James Robinson, envisioned a fairly expeditious process.”After a 200-300 day design period, construction will begin on the new high school,” the fact sheet said.
But just a few months after the vote, the first wave of COVID-19 cases began sweeping across Ohio and the nation. By March 12, 2020, Gov. Mike DeWine ordered the state’s schools to shut down through April 3. Subsequent orders closed the state’s schools for the remainder of the school year.
But schools weren’t the only public entities affected. Coordination with the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission, the district’s financial partner in the project with a 44% stake, slowed to a crawl. After a Feb. 3, 2020, meeting with district officials and the board of education, more than a year lapsed until funding was aproved by the OFCC in April 2021.
“At that time they (the OFCC) shut down like everybody else did,” Morgan said. “There’s a whole bunch of things you have to do, but you couldn’t do those pieces and parts.”
Cost concerns
With the funding picture cleared up by the OFCC, the district was able to move forward. In June 2021, an architect was chosen, and in August 2021, Shook Construction was selected as construction manager.
But the delay had changed the financial dynamics of the project. As the project moved into the design phase, the estimated price tag had shot through the roof.
A June 15 Construction and Facilities Update on the district’s web site put it this way: “The punch came after putting the number in the spreadsheet which revealed that the district would need just under 4 million more dollars committed to the New High School portion of the project.”
At a meeting of the project’s core team two days later, the possibility of abandoning the new high school was discussed.
Shook, the project architect and the OFCC were told by the district that if costs kept rising, the district would be prepared “To stop the project and go in a different direction.”
“(You) know what inflation did over that time,” Morgan said. “It was up to 22.9%. We have been working hard and have got that number down somewhat.”
The impasse eventually was resolved, however, as Shook and the architect were told the footprint of the high school would need to be smaller, “without eliminating any classrooms,” Morgan said.
“We need you to design a smaller footprint without eliminating any classrooms,” Morgan said. “25% over budget was too much to handle.”
The superintendent said the cost pressures jumbled the project equation and the district continues to evaluate what it can afford to do beyond the new high school building.
“We are trying to do all we can to balance all those things out,” Morgan said. “Right now, we still believe we can deliver the things we said, (but) it’s going to have to be pared down some.”
Elsewhere
The Cuyahoga Falls City School District plans it own groundbreaking event for its new grades 6 to 12 campus on Sept. 27 and is confronting some of the same issues as its neighbor to the south.
Jeff Adams, vice president of Hammond Construction, said in an email that higher costs and supply issues are a given of doing business in today’s economy.
“Yes, being affected by inflation is unavoidable in today’s market,” he said. “This challenge requires extra effort to maximize the efficiency of every dollar that we invest in these new facilities.”
He also characterized supply chain issues as inevitable. The Cuyahoga Falls schools project is in its construction infancy, however, so that issue hasn’t had to be dealt with.
All told, Hammond said, the issues will inevitably have some effect.
“Certainly, the project has had to make concessions but our team is focused on searching out any excess while not sacrificing any of the intended educational use of the facility,” he said.
More:New Cuyahoga Falls superintendent tackles schools’ top concerns
‘Generation on generation’
For Morgan, his district’s groundbreaking event was a welcome positive after a grueling process to get to that point.”It was very cool to have generation on generation of Panthers… out there putting shovels in the ground,” he said.
As evidence of the event’s significance to the district and New Franklin, local officials including Barberton Judge Todd McKenney and New Franklin Councilman Jim Cotts attended and celebrated with social media posts.
Cotts said in a phone interview Friday that the new high school is a point of pride for many in the district.
“It will be great for the learning environment,” he said. “Having the building that matches the quality of education is going to be fantastic for Manchester and New Franklin.”
More: Manchester Panthers 2022 high school football preview
Cotts, like Morgan, talked about the continuing tradition and pride Manchester students and graduates have for the district.
“You see generations of families in New Franklin, generations of families that have gone to Manchester,” he said. “You talk about the sense of community — that’s huge. I think it’s invaluable.”
The district has plans to renovate the old high school for elementary school students and is moving as quickly as it can to keep costs down, Morgan said. He’s hoping for a high school opening celebration for the 2024-2025 school year.
“We are being aggressive with the timeline to combat inflation,” he said. “The longer you wait, the longer you have inflation (fears).”
Leave a message for Alan Ashworth at 330-996-3859 or email him at[email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @newsalanbeaconj.
