Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

District Presses Pause on $13M in Construction Projects

  • By Matt Jones
  • 06/14/21

The St. Clair R-XIII School District in St. Clair, Mo., announced last week that it will delay several planned construction projects due to a spike in the cost of materials. The school board voted on Thursday, June 10, to pause the wheels of construction on a bus bay ($1.644 million), a new auditorium ($11-12 million), and a pickup and drop-off loop ($340,000).

At the board meeting, members cited the example of lumber costs. A two-by-four was slated to cost $14, while members recalled the same product costing between $2 and $5 during previous, personal home renovation projects.

Other projects will continue, including the installation of a $444,000 safety vestibule in the elementary and junior high schools; and renovations at St. Clair Junior High consisting of a handicap-accessible toilet stall to a women’s restroom ($27,500); a family restroom ($28,200); and installing $3,500 in vestibule carpeting. Work will also continue on projects already in progress, including a $413,000 track and a $386,000 grandstand.

All of the above projects, both those slated to continue and those that have been delayed, were intended to be funded by a $12.75 million bond issue that voters passed in June 2020.

“I want to pause on a lot of things,” said district superintendent Dr. Kyle Kruse. “I have a hard time really wanting to pause on safety.”

According to the original terms of the bond issue agreement, the money must be spent within three years of receiving it. The bond issuer, LJ Hart & Co., has said that it will consider extending the deadline under reasonable circumstances. The school board said at its June 2 meeting that it will return to the delayed projects “in a few months” to price-check construction materials.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • URI Cuts Underwater Ribbon on New Ocean Robotics Laboratory

    The University of Rhode Island recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new Ocean Robotics Laboratory at its Narragansett Bay Campus, according to a news release. Two students used a remotely operated vehicle to cut an underwater ribbon in a 30-by-20-foot test tank.

  • University of Pennsylvania Releases Design of Future Physical Sciences Building

    The University of Pennsylvania (Penn) in Philadelphia, Penn., recently released renderings of an upcoming 350,000-square-foot Physical Sciences Building, according to news release. The facility was designed by CO Architects and will unite the university’s departments of Physics and Astronomy, Mathematics, and Earth and Environmental Science.

  • Barbara Vick Western Branch

    Barbara Vick Western Branch

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The Barbara Vick Western Branch has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Grand Prize award in the category of Renovation.

  • Deferred Maintenance Issues Growing at Universities, Gordian Reports

    U.S. colleges and universities are falling increasingly behind on facilities maintenance and repair, according to Gordian’s 13th annual State of Facilities in Higher Education report. The deferred capital renewal burden has reached $156 per gross square foot, an 8% increase over the previous year.