The Bristol Township school board plans to spend up to $53.9 million on renovations to the now-closed Benjamin Franklin Middle School.
This cost is $33.4 million more than was expected to be spent to renovate the school on Mill Creek Road in Levittown when the district unveiled The District Plan for 21st Century Excellence, back in the 2012-13 school year. At that time, the work timeframe was to be completed by 2016.
The board voted unanimously for the project at its November meeting and held a hearing in December. Public comment closed Wednesday.
Asked why the school renovations have been delayed and are now costing more than twice the original estimate, Joshua Sweigard, district business manager, said only in an email response:
The Bristol Township School District and its teachers union have reached a contract settlement more than a year after their previous contract expired. The estimated cost to the district is $4M (million) in additional wages and benefits over the four-year term of the contract, said district Business Manager Joshua Sweigard.
The two sides reached out to the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board in February last year and a fact-finder took on the negotiations in April.
The school board agreed to the fact-finder s terms at its Dec. 14 meeting, voting 8-1 to adopt the contract. Board member Constance Moore voted against it. The board also unanimously passed a resolution allowing for up to a 4% increase in property taxes when the district prepares its budget for the 2021-22 school year.