Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
The Neshaminy School District is planning to move forward with a plan to construct a new $51.8 million elementary school in Middletown Township.
Last week, the school board held a state-required Act 34 hearing on the plan to construct the new elementary school on the Maple Point Middle School site. The building is designed to replace the aging Pearl S. Buck Elementary School in the township’s Levittown section.
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An Act 34 hearing was held late last year, but once bids came in more than 22 percent higher than expected, the school board rejected the bids earlier this year.
Under state law, if the estimated cost of a school building project increases by more than 8 percent, a new Act 34 hearing has to be held.
The new building would be approximately 115,000-square-feet and has room for 800 to 900 elementary school students. It would feature modern amenities and be on the same campus at Maple Point Middle School on Langhorne-Yardley Road, which sits on 85 acres of land, but it would not connect to middle school and connected district administrative offices.
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The new building will have grade-level pods for students and classes. There will be flexible spaces, classrooms, and bathrooms for students in each pod, according to Scott Downie, an architect with Spiezle Architectural Group.
District officials have said that the new building is needed as a replacement for Pearl S. Buck and also because the district expects the enrollment to rise from 8,991 to 9,625 by the 2025-2026 school year, according to a study done by Statistical Forecasting LLC.
Pearl S. Buck, which sits on 13 acres of land, was opened in 1968 and has received no major renovations, according to information provided at a 2014 school board meeting. The only other district school not renovated since opening was Oliver Heckman Elementary School on the Langhorne Borough and Middletown Township border. Heckman was closed in 2016 and has sat vacant since.
Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
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Superintendent Dr. Rob McGee said estimates prior to soaring inflation showed upgrades to the Pearl S. Buck building would cost as much as $26 million and take years to complete.
McGee said the district has already improved elementary schools in Lower Southampton and built the new Tawanka Elementary School. The district is now focused on the schools in Middletown Township.
Neshaminy Business Administrator Donald Irwin said the total estimated cost for the new elementary school is $51.8 million.
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In March, the district received a bond to pay for most of the project. Some existing funds and an incoming $5 million in federal stimulus money would help pay for the work.
Irwin said the district is working to make sure the increased costs don’t have severe impacts on taxpayers.
Since the bids came in millions over the projected budget in April, the district and design team have re-engineered certain aspects, saving $3 million from the cost, Irwin said.
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The school board will still need to put the project out for bid again and award bids before the project moves forward.
Residents and taxpayers have until Monday, September 19 to submit written testimony on the project to School Board Secretary Jennifer Burns, Attention: Act 34 Hearing, 2250 Langhorne-Yardley Road, Langhorne, PA 19047.
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