New Havre de Grace High construction could start in 2017, officials say

Ground should be broken by next fall to start construction of a combined Havre de Grace middle and high school, according to Harford County Public Schools officials.&quot;Our design team and staff are currently completing the documents in preparation for bid at some point in the late spring/summer of 2017,&quot; Joe Licata, chief of administration for the school system, wrote in an email Wednesday.He said later that school officials intend to break ground next fall, depending on how the bidding process goes. The entire construction process, which includes demolition of the existing middle and high schools, could take about two-and-a-half to three years, he said.Licata said school officials anticipate occupying the building, with students and staff, by the start of the 2019-20 school year.&quot;It depends on a lot of factors,&quot; he said.School system and Harford County officials are collaborating to determine the best way to fund construction of the more than 248,000 square-foot replacement school in Havre de Grace, which has an estimated price tag of $99.2 million.Licata stressed that amount is a &quot;placeholder number,&quot; since project completion is still several years away, and factors such as the state construction funding formula and inflation must be taken into account.&quot;It's unlikely that it's going to come in that range,&quot; he said of the current estimates.The school system and the county are discussing &quot;alternative funding methods and value engineering in an effort to reduce costs associated with this project in order to get the best value for the best price, without compromising the integrity of the design or construction,&quot; Licata wrote in an email.&quot;This is an ongoing effort and analysis that will continue for several months,&quot; he stated.Regardless of the funding strategy selected, however, &quot;the funding will likely still come from local sources and hopefully the state as well,&quot; according to Licata.County Executive Barry Glassman, who held up funding for the project after taking office in late 2014, has said he wants to see construction start before his current term ends in 2018.But Glassman also has not yet committed to borrowing the tens of millions of dollars which will be the county's share of the project. He has said they will look at both alternative funding sources and push for the state to contribute more to local school projects, but he also stated emphatically he would not raise taxes to build the school.The Havre de Grace replacement project is No. 1 on a list of 40 capital projects that make up the school system's fiscal 2018 capital improvement plan. The Board of Education approved the CIP in September for submission to the state this month.The new building, which would support 1,542 middle and high school students, would be built on the grounds of the present-day Havre de Grace Middle School on Lewis Lane.The existing middle school, which opened in 1967, would be demolished, along with the existing high school at Congress Avenue and Juniata Street. That building opened in 1955, was expanded during the 1950s and 1970s and renovated in 1984.Both schools are among the oldest in Harford County.Licata said the athletic fields at James R. Harris Stadium, which are across Juniata Street from the high school, will remain and be the main athletic fields for the new school.School system officials have not decided, at this point, what will be done with the high school gymnasium/auditorium building across Congress Avenue, which was built in 1971.&quot;We think that's an asset that could be used in some other way,&quot; Licata said.Licata said school officials &quot;will be ready, in general terms, at this time next year to break ground&quot; on the replacement school during a pre-session meeting with local state legislators in late September.A panel of Harford County legislators met with representatives of multiple county agencies, the school system, Harford Community College and University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health Sept. 29 at the Abingdon Library as they prepare for the 2017 Maryland General Assembly session, which begins in January.Del. Mary Ann Lisanti, whose district includes Havre de Grace, asked how a separate project to replace Amtrak's aging Susquehanna River Rail Bridge, which is about 10 years out, would affect the replacement school project.The tracks that lead to the bridge are near the high school athletic fields and the current middle school and will still be there in some configuration after a new school is built.Licata said the school system designers have been in &quot;very close contact&quot; with bridge project leaders.&quot;We have been able to alter our plans to minimize the issues that might come down the road with their design,&quot; he said of the bridge project.

New Havre de Grace High construction could start in 2017, officials say

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