Board approves $41.99 million guaranteed maximum price for Hartford Sylvia Encinas Elementary rebuild

The Chandler Unified governing board unanimously approved a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) with Core Construction for the Hartford Sylvia Encinas Elementary replacement campus at its Dec. 10 meeting.

Facilities staff described the project as an approximately 83,000-square-foot replacement campus with capacity for 750 students. The scope includes demolition and abatement of the existing buildings, new buildings on the north fields, new play fields, expanded parking and parent drop-off improvements. The district negotiated a GMP of $41,989,861; staff said the cost is funded with $39,992,063 from the 2025 bond and $1,997,798 in adjacent-ways funding.

Project timing and staging: staff said permit submission work is underway, dirt crews are scheduled to break ground in February 2026, students and staff would move into portions of the new campus in July 2027, and full project completion is expected by January 2028. During construction the current school will remain occupied; staff plan a phased approach that preserves play-space by relocating some playground equipment to maintain student activity areas during construction.

Board members asked about the number of classrooms and whether the new campus would meet capacity needs; staff indicated there are approximately four classrooms per grade with confirmation to follow. The district also said it will publish project milestones and a dashboard so taxpayers can follow bond spending and construction status.

Ending: With a unanimous vote, the district will move forward with the GMP, start permitting and publish community updates during the build-out.