With materials costs soaring, Hall County School District officials have pressed the pause button on some major construction projects.
District Superintendent Will Schofield said when taxpayers approved bonds for the 10-year facilities plan devised by the school board two years ago, construction costs were nowhere near what they are today.
"Our estimates are that costs are up somewhere between 60 and 90% per square foot," Schofield said.
One of the major projects that has been put on hold is the replacement elementary school on Ramsey Road that will house the combined campuses of Riverbend and White Sulphur elementary schools.
"We had estimated that project at $25 million three years ago. We bid it last Monday and it came in at about $43.6 million," Schofield said. "We've got a number of old facilities that need to be replaced and if we start spending 80, 90% more per facility, we're just going to get to the end of that bag of money and say we just can't do any more."
Rather than be put in that position, board members agreed with Schofield to wait until prices stabilize.
The brakes have also been applied to the meat processing facility planned for the East Hall High School campus. Schofield said the building cost for the plant is double what they had first estimated.
That said, some long-awaited smaller projects will move forward, according to Schofield.
"The East Hall High School renovations, which we have a great need for, the West Hall High School Performing Arts Wing...we are going to continue with some of the projects that are already so far along that we really need to button them up," Schofield said.
Schofield said he knows there will be disappointment with the delay.
"I'd be disappointed if they weren't disappointed," Schofield said. "We'd all like to put our boys and girls in better space...but we realize there are some realities that we're faced with, and you know what, we're going to continue to work until our fingers bleed to take care of kids regardless of how old the building we're in is. They'll take it like professionals."
Schofield said there's no way to predict when the tide will turn on pricing, but district officials will keep a close eye on it.
"Anybody who says they know when this cycle is going to change certainly is smarter than I," Schofield said. "One thing we do know is that the construction industry has always been cyclical...and what goes up must come down. We hope it's sooner rather than later. Once again, there comes a price - and we're there - that this school district is saying we're just not not going to pay that to get work done."
