Easton board hears $298 million plan for new high school; design narrowed to 457,000 sq. ft., board asked for feedback

Architects and district officials presented schematic designs and a budget update Tuesday for a proposed replacement of Easton Area High School, saying the project now estimates a $298 million total cost and a building of about 457,000 square feet.

The presentation, led by LA5 and CHA consultants with district leadership in attendance, outlined site selection, a three-level schematic building plan and a phasing and schedule that would aim for schematic-to-design-development approval in August and a construction-groundbreaking window beginning in May 2027. Jamie Bortz, project manager with LA5, said the design team has reduced the program from earlier estimates and is “down to 457,000 square feet, which gives us a PDE capacity of 2,975 students,” and is targeting roughly 151 square feet per student under current Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) measures.

The board’s members, district administrators and consultants framed the project as a campus master plan that relocates the building into the corner of the existing site and reconfigures athletic fields, parking and bus circulation. The proposed building stacks most academic spaces in three stories, places large community spaces (gymnasium and auditorium) to take advantage of grade changes, and consolidates parking and entry to reduce internal travel distances. The design team said the current schematic keeps the high school operational during construction and seeks to limit exterior travel and utility impacts.

Why it matters: the district’s design team told the board the cost and size have been steadily trimmed from earlier concepts while retaining core program capacity and community spaces. The $298 million figure presented as the total project cost includes both a roughly $230 million hard construction estimate and contingencies, furniture and equipment. Consultants said reducing square footage and active value-engineering will be crucial to meeting the budget and the timing needed to control inflation and contractor-market risks.

Key details and timeline - Total project cost (executive-level reveal): $298,000,000. The consultants reported roughly $230,000,000 of that as the permanent hard-construction component, plus about $7,000,000 for furniture and equipment and roughly $11,000,000 in contingency lines. The team carried a mid‑range inflation factor (2%) in the current estimate. - Current schematic building size: 457,000 square feet (down from earlier schematic ranges of 450,000–480,000 and previous program peaks near 535,000 sq. ft.). - PDE capacity cited at the current schematic: 2,975 students; the team said that equates to about 151 sq. ft. per student under PDE assumptions. - Schedule milestones presented: continue schematic design, seek board direction and public input now; transition to design development in August; bid and procurement timeline aimed at procurement in time for a May 2027 site start/groundbreaking. - Construction phasing: three major phases were described with an extended phase for demolition and site work that will require careful temporary mechanical/electrical phasing so the existing school can remain operational.

Risks and constraints raised by presenters - Site complexity: consultants flagged significant earthwork, stormwater and subsurface issues on the selected corner site. They recommended additional geotechnical investigation and budget allowance for possible subsurface remediation. - Procurement capacity: the team noted the size of the project will limit the number of general contractors able to bond and deliver the work; they said a procurement strategy is being developed to address that constraint. - Phasing pain points: presenters highlighted a period late in construction when demolishing the existing mechanical and gym wing will require temporary systems and careful sequencing to maintain school operations. - Inflation and tariffs: the team recommended continued monitoring of inflation and tariff impacts; they noted roughly half of hard-construction cost is labor and therefore less sensitive to tariffs, but some materials and earthwork remain vulnerable.

Board questions and next steps Board members pressed consultants on enrollment assumptions and program size. One director noted an enrollment study projecting roughly 2,500 students at opening and asked whether that would change square footage or cost targets; consultants replied that reductions in classroom counts would reduce some program area but that core, community and performance spaces (auditorium, gym, pool) do not scale down proportionally and that savings would therefore be more modest than a linear per‑student calculation. Several board members asked for a brief reassessment that ties enrollment projections to possible alternates or bid‑alternates (the team said some classroom clusters could be alternates on bid documents).

Consultants said the next formal design milestone for the board is approval to move into design development in August, and they asked the board to provide any high‑level directives (for example, sizing of major community spaces or capacity assumptions) before that milestone so changes do not jeopardize schedule or bidding windows. The team also committed to additional value‑engineering and a formal value‑engineering workshop to seek savings while preserving program intent.

Quotes "Weare down to 457,000 square feet, which gives us a PDE capacity of 2,975 students," Jamie Bortz, project manager with LA5, said during the presentation. "The reveal for the budget is $298,000,000," a project presenter told the board as the team summarized the current total project cost estimate.

Ending Presenters asked the board and public for continuing input at multiple upcoming forums; the team said routine standing‑committee updates and a planned public Act 34 hearing (a required municipal/education process) will follow in coming months. The district said it will return with refined cost, phasing and design‑development materials in August and will continue value‑engineering work intended to reduce risk and cost before bidding.