With estimated costs to the town ranging from $16 million to $26 million, plus as much as 30 percent more in so-called “soft costs,” the Hildreth Elementary School renovation project may well be the largest capital project that the town of Harvard has yet undertaken.
The biggest factor in determining cost for the project will be its scope and design. The Harvard school district is working with the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA), which requires the School Building Committee to look at a range of designs, from the bare minimum required by immediate needs to replacing the entire building. The MSBA will also reimburse the town for a large share of the costs—about 45 percent for this design and feasibility phase of the project and for subsequent construction costs.
Arrowstreet, the project’s design firm, has presented four basic schematic designs (see diagrams below). While these are far from finished plans, they offer a sense of the alternatives under consideration.
The building committee agreed early in its discussions that salvaging the kindergarten wing was impossible, so all four plans show that wing as demolished. All four plans also allow for replacing that classroom space and adding upgrades to bring the 1988 building up to current standards.
Each schematic design comes with a preliminary cost estimate based on construction, which School Committee member SusanMary Redinger presented to the Capital Planning and Investment Committee Monday morning. These construction cost estimates do not include “soft” costs such as engineering, permitting, and legal expenses, which can add another 20 to 30 percent to the construction costs, according to a building committee information sheet.
Four design possibilities
Scheme 1 basically rebuilds the K-wing and slightly enlarges the cafeteria. This plan requires modular classrooms for use while the new wing is under construction, which adds to the cost. The cost to the town, after reimbursement from MSBA, for this version is estimated at $16 million, plus soft costs, Redinger told the capital committee.
Scheme 2 builds a new wing on the other side of the 1988 building, allowing for a new cafeteria and enlarged gym. (The current cafeteria is so small that students are divided into six lunch periods, with the earliest starting at 10:50 a.m.) Two advantages that the design firm Arrowstreet points out for Scheme 2 are that the K-wing could remain in use while the new wing is being built and that the layout allows for more parking improvements than the other designs. The cost estimate for this plan is $19 million, not including soft costs.
Scheme 3 offers a new gym as well as a new classroom wing and cafeteria. Like Scheme 1, this plan would require modular classrooms during construction, and the cost estimate is $22 million, plus soft costs.
Scheme 4 foresees a completely new building, replacing both the K-wing and the 1988 building. The building would go up on land north of the current building. Once it was complete, the existing building—which could be used until that point—would be demolished. The cost estimate is $26 million, plus soft costs.
Chances for public input
A public meeting was scheduled for Wednesday evening, April 26, as an opportunity for residents to ask questions and learn more about the range of designs. Two more such meetings are planned for Wednesday, May 3, and Tuesday, May 9. Both will be held at 5:30 p.m. in the HES library. The meetings of the School Building Committee are also open to the public. And information is also available at the project website: https://sites.google.com/psharvard.org/hesbuildingproject/home.
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