Eighteen construction projects are planned for the summer, according to Jimmy Disler, LISD chief facilities and operations officer.
At the LISD board of trustees regular meeting March 26, Disler told the board that the new Danielson Middle School will still open in time for the 2020-21 school year, but massive renovations at Vandegrift High School might be affected.
“Danielson will be completed on time,” Disler told the board during the online meeting. “Vandegrift is a tight one.”
The $454.4 million school bond voters approved in 2017 earmarked $29,548,592 for “additions/renovations to increase capacity” at Vandegrift High School, according to LISD documents.
Current construction plans at VHS call for additional classroom space, renovations of existing classrooms and security upgrades. A new, $3 million agricultural facility is also scheduled to be built.
Disler said that manufacturers of construction supplies, from sawmills to foundries, are shutting down and reducing the amount of available supplies. In the short term, Disler said most supplies have already been ordered.
“It’s a race to get product. No doubt,” he said.
Even if LISD is able to purchase the supplies, Disler said coronavirus concerns may also affect available labor.
“And then, there’s the subcontractors. If they stop showing up, that’s another issue we’re going to have to deal with,” he said.
Disler said the board may have to dial back LISD’s summer construction schedule.
“We’ll probably have to make a decision by early May,” he said. “We may have to revise scope of what is planned.”
