The State College Area School Board heard an updated cost estimate on Monday and looked at the preliminary designs for the planned new Park Forest Middle School.
The current estimated costs for the 270,000 square meter building on Little Lion Drive are $ 127.9 million to USD 136.9 million, including location work, construction, escalation estimates, soft costs and eventual events. These figures could increase by an estimated 2.8 million US dollars if there are different alternations.
A cost estimate created by a third party is expected to be presented in July with deeper details and evaluation of the current hardware store, said Straub.
“We tried to incorporate some conservative estimation data due to the volatility of the market,” he said.
The school authority in March 2024 chose an 18 hectare package in front of the Valley Vista Drive – and later acquired an adjacent 7 hectare plot -As location for a new three -story building to replace the existing Park Forest Middle School. The current building on the school trip in Patton Township was last renovated in 1995 and has long been interpreted by the district of a major reconstruction or a greater exchange.
Straub also presented external and interior equipment for the new building and current location plans when the project team reached the 60% point in the plan development process.
The work plan is processed and recently focused on the move and refinement of rainwater management, the coordination of supply connections, the refinement of reception areas, the classification of location, the transport configurations and the geothermal well field placement.
The current plans for the site show a parking space for buses on the north side of the building, the staff and the visitor parking slating as well as the parent and collection in the south as well as a service and delivery area in the west. It maintains the tennis courts and the soccer field on the east side of the package and finds a rainwater pool at the Far Eastern end of the site near the Valley Vista Drive.
In addition to the tennis courts and near the soccer field, there is a potential grass play area.
Geothermal fountain fields would mainly be under the soccer field and the North car park.
Randy Brown, official of the district financing and operation, said that it is a “very close location plan” to record everything that is needed.
“We try to design so that traffic can flow in different times at different times or if the traffic flows have to change in the coming years, we will have that,” said Brown. “We still don't know whether there will be red lights on or outside of Valley Vista.”
The classroom wing will have a three -story stacked design for the building.
“This helps both pedagogically and the students on the sixth, seventh and eighth classes, but it is also cheaper to stack through the building,” said Straub.
The outer of the building includes stone, ground facial masonry, wooden grain metal paneling and dark bronze metal cladding.
These elements are included in the interior of the building together with concrete block, and ceiling clouds are used to optimize acoustics
A large canopy also hangs over the main entrance.
At school, the administrative offices, the auditorium, the gym, the library and the cafeteria have a central location on the first and second floor.
“You can effectively switch the wings in the classroom in its entirety and use the building to use after school,” said Straub.
In response to a question from the board member Carline CreveCoeur, a problem that the parents recently raised at a meeting after a thwarted school shots in State High, Brown said that the project team is planning meetings with the school resource officials from local police stations and the security team of the district to discuss their recommendations.
“Then we will use this information from you to inform the design and help ourselves to determine which security features are appropriate for the public and what others we are confidential for protection in the building,” said Brown.
Straub added that Crabtree, RohrbauGH, designed all school buildings to cope with different security concerns and how first aiders would be able to move through the furnishings.
“One thing that we include in all of our buildings is preventing crime through environmental design,” said Straub. “In many pictures you have seen, we try to create a building that is both an inviting and warm educational institution, but we also try to embed these security managers.”
The design follows a sustainability certification plan with the approach that has been available in recent years for the construction of the new state and three primary school projects. The new Park Forest Middle School is expected to achieve Leed Gold Certification, said Straub.
Sustainability elements include a full geothermal HLK system that prioritize daylight and air quality indoors and a thermal envelope. A project alternative comprises a solar array for which the district is waiting for a decision for a grant from the solar for schools in the state, and in tandem with the solar program of the district, the new building has the potential to have net zero emissions.
Another alternative attention is the bird -free glass in strategic places.
What's next?
The project team recently completed its third round of interviews with Park Forest teachers about plans for the new building and made adjustments due to their feedback
“The general consensus is that the staff is very excited,” said Brown. “They are very happy and are very satisfied with a lot of improvement that you see. One of the things you have got away is that you want the best that is possible, just like us, so that you continue to ask questions about different things.”
Karen Wiser, director of Park Forest Middle School, said she appreciated the responsiveness.
“You reacted great to all of our needs and ensured that we create the best learning environment for our students,” said Wiser.
The community meetings are expected to be planned in the near future.
After receiving the cost estimate of third-party providers in July, the district expects 90% plan and construction plans as well as a necessary hearing between August and October.
The bid would then take place in October and November, with the board checking and accepting offers in December.
Construction is expected to begin in January or February 2026 and take two years.
No plans for the current Park Forest Middle School have yet been made as soon as the new building has been opened, said Brown and the FairTount building on State College, which is largely not used today.
“We will work with our team of architecture to talk about what rooms are necessary, what the practical rooms in one of these buildings would be, how can it come into play what the costs would look like and all these components,” said Brown.