Easton Area SD advances PlanCon A/B review as design team presents updated high school schematic

Alloy5 and CHA representatives presented updated schematic designs and site plans for Easton Area School District’s proposed new high school and briefed the board on the PlanCon Part A and Part B process, with a board vote on PlanCon A and B scheduled for the Sept. 30 meeting.

Superintendent (name not specified) opened the presentation and said the PlanCon items would be part of the approval agenda next month and invited board members to ask PlanCon-related questions during the presentation. Jamie Bortzian, a project manager with Alloy5, explained that Part A lays out justification for a new building — enrollment projections, existing-facility descriptions and community involvement — while Part B focuses on the building design and room counts used to compute full-time equivalents under Act 34.

Jamie Bortzian, Alloy5 project manager, said: "the Pennsylvania Department of Education provides funding to do school construction projects through this PlanCon process. But this process currently is in moratorium. So there is no reimbursement process currently. So right now this A and B that we're following through really pertains to the Act 34 process." She added that Part B is a graphic analysis of instructional spaces and how they count toward state standards.

Bill Deegan, the design lead, reviewed site work and circulation changes, including field relocations and rerouted utilities to allow the existing school to remain in operation during construction. He described the main entries, a three-story academic wing, performing-arts spaces, gymnasium and natatorium, and noted about 900 fixed parking spaces plus overflow for buses. Deegan said the design uses precast panels for speed of erection and to tie materiality to the region.

Mike Depadwin of CHA said design-development work has included transportation flow, safety and coordination with district transportation staff, and that the overall project budget remains stable as the team adds detail to specific construction divisions. He said a field house and other auxiliary sports-area structures are not in the original base budget and are being proposed as alternates. Depadwin added a projected timeline: the board vote on PlanCon A/B will “kick off the timeline” for Act 34 and that the Act 34 hearing is projected for January 2026.

Designers and administration repeatedly described the field house and additional athletic-area work as alternates that can be staged in a later construction phase. Mike Depadwin said those items are being refined with civil engineers and could be included as phase-2 alternates so phase-1 construction of the main building does not conflict with athletics operations.

Superintendent (name not specified) and the design team emphasized community and instructional requirements required by PlanCon — flexible spaces, equity across academic and athletic spaces, and safety and security features — and said more design-development materials and interior fit-out concepts will be shared in future meetings. Alloy5 invited staff to a professional-development session on Sept. 22 to preview the design materials with district staff.

What’s next: the administration brought PlanCon Part A and Part B to the board for review; a formal vote to submit PlanCon A/B will be on the Sept. 30 board agenda. The design team plans further design development and an Act 34 hearing in January 2026 if the PlanCon steps proceed on the presented timeline.