Board building committee advances junior school design with $62M 'not-to-exceed' budget; Howard project paused

Board members reported building-committee activity and bond-program construction updates during the Oct. 22 meeting.

The committee said it authorized proceeding with junior school design and to pursue a not-to-exceed guaranteed maximum price (GMP) in the approximately $62 million range to move forward with design and preconstruction. Committee members described the figure as "62-point-something million dollars" and said the estimate baked in escalations; the committee noted escalations of roughly 30% were included in earlier calculations and that staff and designers are working to refine line items and scope so available dollars cover intended work.

Committee members said the district placed Howard Early Childhood Center'related work on pause so the team could focus on junior school scope and budget. The pause is intended to prioritize completing design and budgeting on the junior school project before resuming Howard planning.

Construction and bond program updates Trustees and staff also shared status updates from bond work across the district: Cambridge work on a central plant and building renovations; resurfacing and shade improvements at the tennis center (four courts resurfaced with four remaining to be finished); and progress at the softball field (CMU block, batting-cage steel and field drainage work reported as in progress). A construction crane at the high school site was reported as being disassembled in the coming weeks, with staff anticipating removal by mid-November.

No formal board vote on the GMP was recorded in the public portion of the meeting; the committee report presented the budget guidance and next steps for continued design and cost refinement.

Ending Trustees said the committee will continue to refine scope and cost line items and return to the board with further recommendations; until junior school GMP and scope are finalized, Howard work will remain on hold.