Costs of delaying the opening of the $36 million school are not yet known, but Crowder said it will include heating both the old and new buildings through the winter. He said the school district will be working with builders to recoup that money.
“It’s not the taxpayers’ fault that the building’s not ready. That’s something that is going to have to be worked out,” Crowder said. “We’re not going to pay stuff that’s not fair.”
District Treasurer Mike Davis was not in the office Tuesday to comment on how much the delay would cost.
Several areas remain unfinished, including wiring, according to district spokeswoman Holli Morrish.
“There was a possibility we could have some difficulty with temperature control,” she said. “It just won’t be in move-in condition.”
Other areas of concern include the behind-schedule auditorium and concrete drives that have not been poured, but would be needed if emergency equipment had to respond to the school, Crowder said.
The delay is not the first for the building, which was first scheduled to be completed by October. Crowder said the construction manager, Skillman Corp., maintains the district will have occupancy of the building by mid-December.
Crowder has been regularly attending project meetings. He said it was obvious to him the date was unrealistic when, two weeks ago, a subcontractor told him their job would not be complete until Dec. 31 – two weeks after the date the district is supposed to get the keys to the building.
The delays, Crowder said, would not have left time for teachers to try out electrical plugs and technology. That could have results in many problems on the first day in the new building and resulted in a bad first impression, he said.
The school board decided on a summer move because there is not enough time over the week-long spring break.
“It’s really, really disappointing. I think the board members are heartbroken over it, but we are pretty confident we made the best and most responsible decision,” Crowder said.
“We’re really sorry that we couldn’t get the kids into the building in January. But we will ensure them that we are going to give them an outstanding building that’s ready when we do move in,” he said.
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