Price Tag for Dual High School Renovation Projects: $240 Million

The simultaneous renovation of Platt and Maloney high schools will cost roughly $240 million, according to plans presented by the architects at Thursday night’s School Building Committee meeting.

The Platt project, overseen by Antinozzi Associates, comes with a price tag of $123,527,841. The Maloney makeover, directed by Fletcher Thompson, will cost $116,520,000. Construction is tentatively scheduled to begin in the spring of 2013 and continue through the summer of 2017.

“I acknowledge that we are rushing the storm,” said School Building Committee Chairman Matthew Dominello, referring to the fact that the plans have to be approved by the Meriden City Council and filed with the state Department of Education by June 30.

State reimbursement rates may be reduced next year, so the school board wants to submit the plans in time for consideration by the state legislature before that happens. The state is expected to pay more than two-thirds of the bill for the renovations.

The committee voted to accept the architectural plans and costs and send them to the city council. The lone dissenting vote came from Secretary Patty Murphy, who said that the plans are too preliminary and expressed skepticism that the cost will not go up.

“There is too much fluff in here to be able to guarantee it,” she said.

“The number this evening is the number. It’s not going up,” insisted committee member Glen Lamontagne, who has been working closely with the architects. These estimates represent the worst-case scenarios, he explained. “The architects were both instructed that we are only going to go to the city once.”

“I hope you’re right,” Murphy replied. “When they see these kinds of numbers in this economy, people are not going to be happy.”

Murphy also questioned why the Maloney makeover will cost $7 million less than Platt project, but the school will be about 10,000 square feet bigger. Paul Antinozzi, president of Antinozzi Associates, said Platt will cost more because there will be more new construction there. The Maloney renovation will retain more of the existing school in the finished product.

Highlights of the Maloney Plan

The plan for Maloney calls for keeping the classrooms on the left side of the building and shared areas such as the pool and auditorium on the right. A transition area in the center of the school—a large corridor referred to as the “gallery”--will give the school a college feel, said Chief Designer Dan Davis of Fletcher Thompson.

The freshmen academy will continue to have its own space, which will be renovated. A new academic wing for upperclassmen will be built onto the left side of the building. The new wing will have four floors and will attach to the three-floor freshmen academy via a two-story bridge at the upper levels. All classrooms will have windows for natural light. No classrooms will be located below ground level.

Other changes will include a new fitness center and “green” features such as an area of roof vegetation and a rain garden in the courtyard which will utilize stones and attractive landscaping to help rainwater naturally flow down the slope and into the storm drains.

Outside the building, the area traditionally used for graduation will remain. New loops for busses and parent drop-off areas will be added to alleviate current traffic problems at the school. An access road may circle the entire building. Terraced seating will be built into the lawn overlooking the baseball field, and the tennis courts will be relocated to the north side of the practice fields.

Highlights of the Platt Plan

The auditorium, the two gyms and the pool are all that will remain of the existing Platt High School, according to Antinozzi. Two brand new academic wings will be built—a two-story wing for the freshmen academy at the front of the school and a three-story wing for upperclassmen at the back. The library/media center will be located in that wing. As with Maloney, all classrooms will have windows to provide natural light.

The building will be organized around two main indoor loops, giving students multiple routes to get anywhere in the school. The cafeteria and administrative offices will be clustered around the main entrance. The school nurse and guidance offices will flank the gym, and art and special ed classrooms will be situated off the auditorium on the Oregon Road side of the school. The shop wing and custodial service entrance will be relocated so they are not visible from the street.

On the outside of the building, a new bus loop will be added to optimize traffic patterns, and parking on the side of the building away from the street will be approximately doubled. In addition, “Every portion of the building exterior will be refaced,” Antinozzi said.

At both Platt and Maloney, renovations will be completed in phases that allow the schools to be used while construction is ongoing.

Hanover Addition Update

On a much smaller scale, the new addition to Hanover Elementary School is also moving forward. A new wing is being built to house an all-day kindergarten program at the school.

“Our goal is to have a GC (general contractor) onboard by the end of the school year, which is June 20th,” architect Bob Andrade told the School Building Committee. “We are still waiting for Bureau of School Facilities review comments,” he said. That state review is scheduled to be completed by May 13th.

It may not be possible to make the adjustments called for by the state, get bids and select a contractor in such a short time, Andrade admitted. But even if the project starts a bit late, “I’m not concerned about the end date,” he said. The wing should be ready for students by September of 2012.

“My only key concern is, we have to remove a small amount of caulking that contains asbestos,” Andrade said. “It’s better to get that done over the summer.”