With the first day of school approaching, Public Building and Site Commission Chair Robert Mitchell updated the Board of Education at its meeting on Tuesday, August 17, on two building projects overseen by his board: the new Sandy Hook Elementary School and the Newtown High School auditorium renovation projects.

"There are no outstanding items for day one opening," said Mr Mitchell about the Sandy Hook School project.

There are some items left to be fixed, but those will not affect education on the first day of school, Mr Mitchell said.

According to a handout presented by Mr Mitchell to the school board, construction punch list remediation work will continue into September; touch-up of paint and final adjustments are expected to be completed by August 25, and some exterior work, such as installing metal panels, will be done as soon as items are delivered, which will "likely be after the school year commences."

"It is my belief," Superintendent of Schools Joseph V. Erardi, Jr, said, reiterating words on Wednesday evening that he had said at a SHS open house event that Mr Mitchell could not attend, "that [Mr Mitchell] built Sandy Hook School like he was building his own home, and the amount of time that folks don't know that he put in has just been enormous."

Dr Erardi thanked Mr Mitchell for his time and efforts on the school project, and Mr Mitchell added his thanks to the entire Public Building and Site Commission.

For the NHS auditorium project, roughly $3.6 million, Mr Mitchell's report said the revised construction documents - including scope modifications to defer all theater equipment, like rigging, audio visual equipment, and stage lighting - were delivered to the Public Building and Site Commission. The documents will be reviewed at the commission's scheduled August 23 meeting.

"We will start the soft demo... in November, and, unfortunately we will be going through the whole school year, but we will be done in May," said Mr Mitchell, about the project's scope. He added later,"We had hoped to do it over the summer. Getting the state to approve it and getting the project back on the dollar target took longer than we expected."

The infrastructure of the project is going in, but the deferred items will be planned as future Capital Improvement Projects (CIP).

"It won't be as complete as we would like it to be. We had budget numbers we had to hit," said Mr Mitchell. "Everything that was left out is something that can be added later."

A presentation of color options for the high school auditorium project will be planned for a future meeting, according to Mr Mitchell.

The school board approved its CIP for the 2016-17 to 2021-22 fiscal years later in the meeting. The 2016-17 projects are listed as $475,000 for the Middle Gate Elementary School replacement of a 1964 boiler and a lighting upgrade, and $1,402,000 for the restoration of the roof with replacement of the lobby roof at NHS. The second year of the plan, 2017-18, lists $850,000 for roof replacement of the 1948 and 1997 portions of Hawley Elementary School, $1.8 million for the first phase of repiping and boiler replacement at Newtown Middle School, and $850,000 for the second phase of the NHS auditorium project, to cover the deferred expenses.

With the school board's approval, the CIP will go before the Board of Finance.

The Board of Education also approved the district's Year End Financial Report at its meeting, and approved the remaining balance of $2,533 - or .004 percent of the total 2015-16 schools budget, according to district Director of Business Ron Bienkowski - be deposited in the district's nonlapsing account.