BY STEFANIE BOWMANN, Eastern Shore Post
Northampton’s middle and high school modernization remains on schedule to be substantially complete by December 2026, the project manager said.
Dane Seagle, of the Skanska construction firm, presented a project update to Northampton County supervisors on Feb. 11.
The demolition of both the brick veneer on Northampton’s current high school gym and the existing girls locker room and connecting area is complete.
Excavation and backfilling of the girls locker room area is complete.
The laying of concrete blocks is finished for the middle school gym, locker room, and weight room and is ongoing for the auditorium.
The laying of concrete-block partition walls for the middle school locker room and band and choral rooms is ongoing.
Placement of concrete spread footing and column footing foundations is complete in project areas C and D.
Installation of water lines and stormwater lines has begun, and installation of underground stormwater and wastewater plumbing has begun in the middle school and administrative office area.
The installation of underground electrical work and the geothermal wells is ongoing.
Erosion and sediment control measures also are ongoing.
Chair John Coker asked if “substantial completion” meant the point at which the contractor runs through the punch list — a list of minor repairs, modifications, and installations that must be finished to fulfill the project contract.
Seagle said that was correct; at substantial completion, the building is “to the point of beneficial use by its intended purpose.”
The building potentially could receive a temporary certificate of occupancy at that stage, he said.
Seagle noted that “final completion” is 30 days after substantial completion is achieved.
The current total budget for the project is nearly $91 million, which includes construction and other contractor services, furniture, fixtures, and equipment, technology, and special inspections, he said.
County Administrator Charlie Kolakowski clarified that about $84 million of that total is for construction. The remaining $6 million is primarily architectural work, as well as engineering, bonding, insurance, and bidding costs.
He reminded supervisors that the project was put out to bid twice, which added to the architectural costs. A lone bid of $99 million was rejected in 2023. Revisions were made and the project was put out to bid again about a year later, which resulted in an $81.3 million contract being awarded to M.B. Kahn Construction, of South Carolina.
Recent change orders on the project have included one addition of approximately $12,500 for abatement of additional asbestos that was previously unidentified, Seagle said.
All the remaining change orders were deductions related to owner direct purchasing, a program that saves money on sales taxes by allowing the Northampton school division to purchase materials directly from the vendor instead of going through the contractor.
The program has saved Northampton schools about $344,000 to date, with future savings expected, Seagle said.
Since groundbreaking in March 2024, about $16.7 million, or approximately one-sixth of the total project cost, has been spent.
