New Bristol Twp. Schools On Budget, But Behind Schedule

The massive undertaking of consolidating nine aging elementary schools into three state-of-the-art buildings in underway in Bristol Township.

Construction of the new 1,300-student buildings at the sites of Ralph Waldo Emerson Elementary School on Mill Creek Road and James Buchanan Elementary School on Haines  Road are underway.

Despite work being performed at the sites now, the project is 30 to 45 days behind schedule, Superintendent Dr. Samuel Lee said last week. Crews are working hard to meet the September 2015 open date laid out by the district.

The superintendent told LevittownNow.com that a number of problems, ranging from weather to getting a letter of credit that the township required before starting the project. Lee added that township officials worked very quickly to accommodate the district’s permit requests and get the project moving.

Lee warned that future construction delays could hinge on the weather, but he also said none of the delays have yet been caused by any material shortages.

If the two school are still behind as the start of the 2015-2016 school year approaches, the district would likely accelerate the construction schedule or push the start of school back, superintendent said.

“We’ll evaluate as construction moves forward,” Lee said.

District officials have noted constructing two schools at the same time saves money.

The construction of the two new schools is on budget at its early stages, Lee said.

The district currently has all permits for the Emerson and Buchanan sites, school board solicitor David Truelove said last Monday.

Both Truelove and Lee said the district expects to receive permits for the Mary Devine Elementary School site in the next month. The district is still waiting for Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection permits and a county conservation permit.

Once those permits are received, the district can go before Bristol Township Council to request final land development approval for the new school at the Devine site in Croydon. The school is set to be completed for the start of the 2016-2017 school year, district officials have said.

What makes the Devine project different is the building has to be taken down before work can begin due to the size of the site. The roughly 350 displaced students are expected to begin attending classes at the Benjamin Franklin School, which currently serves as the district administrative offices, on Mill Creek Road in Levittown.

According to district officials, the first floor of the Franklin school is almost ready for the new students when classes resume in a few weeks.

Lee said at a ground breaking in May that work on the schools will bring in a “new chapter in the district’s history.”

Here are the estimated costs of the construction projects:

• Emerson: $38,745,000
• Buchanan: $38,767,000
• Devine: $39,007,000