Evansville Early Learning Academy delayed; Martinsburg auditorium, Mountain Ridge construction progress reported

Facilities staff provided a construction update covering Evansville Early Learning Academy, Martinsburg High School auditorium and Mountain Ridge Primary on Sept. 22.

Why it matters: Capital projects determine school capacity, safety and program timing for students and families. Board members asked about schedules, lead times and site approvals.

Evansville Early Learning Academy

- Power and site approvals: Staff said FirstEnergy has approved the portion of work affecting the building after a prior easement issue. Some remaining site approvals for stormwater and site work were still pending.

- Schedule: Project managers reported substantial completion targeted for March 31, 2026. Staff recommended not moving students mid‑year and instead opening the new building for the August 2026 school year to avoid disruption.

Martinsburg High School auditorium

- Work under way: Electricians and HVAC teams are completing work under the balcony and painting structural members black; finish painting of ductwork remains as ductwork is completed. Work is proceeding through the interior finishes and systems.

Mountain Ridge Primary School

- Site work and foundations: Footings are complete; foundation block and plumbing rough‑ins are in progress, and concrete slabs will follow. The access road is nearing the site entry off Jerristown Road.

Neeser/other design work

- Stakeholder meetings scheduled: Staff said stakeholder design meetings are being held to gather teacher and administrator input for new builds and to keep project squarely within School Building Authority budget limits.

Lead times and vandalism tracking

- Lead times: Staff reported generally acceptable lead times for materials on current projects; a prior steel lead-time issue delayed one project earlier in the year.

- Vandalism/work orders: Board members asked whether the district logs vandalism specifically in the work-order system. Facilities staff said vandalism is not currently coded as a separate category in the work‑order system but that the data could be extracted; major incidents are reported to BRIM (insurance) and the district can produce reports on request.

Ending

Staff asked for the board’s blessing to continue toward March substantial completion and to plan for an August 2026 opening for Evansville Early Learning Academy rather than a mid‑year move.