With below-budget bids approved, work set to begin on new Park Forest Middle School

The State College Area School District board of directors this week approved bids for the construction of the new Park Forest Middle School. Construction should begin by early summer, laying the groundwork for an expected opening in early 2029.

FULL STORY: New Park Forest Middle School comes in below budget. When will construction start?

Here are key takeaways as the project shifts into high gear:

• The district will spend about $112.3 million on construction, with total project costs reaching $137.5 million — well below the expected $152 million budget.
• An alternate site wall design proposed by contractors trimmed another $4.5 million from planned costs, according to district finance and operations officer Randy Brown.
• Lobar, Inc. of Dillsburg is expected to serve as the general contractor after previously working with the district on the new State College Area High School and other district projects.
• State College’s school board approved the inclusion of several alternate bids that will add generator capacity and solar panels, cover a 30-year roof warranty and install snow melt system beneath school walkways.
• Another approved alternate bid will install bird-friendly glass for the school’s stair towers, which feature the largest expanses of glass and, in turn, the highest risk for bird strikes.
• The three-story, 277,000-square-foot building will nearly double the footprint of the existing school, which was built in 1971 and has not received major renovations since 1995.
• Substantial completion is targeted for November 2028, with occupancy expected in January 2029 — later than the originally planned opening in time for the start of the 2028-29 school year.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The full story in the link at top was reported, written and edited entirely by journalists.