“Today marks yet another milestone in the construction of this new school and brings Paterson’s students one step closer to the educational spaces they need to realize their academic potential,” said New Jersey Schools Development Authority CEO Charles B. McKenna in a statement.

The new P.S. 16 is designed to educate approximately 700 pre-kindergarten through eighth grade students. It will include 22 general use classrooms, four pre-kindergarten classrooms, three kindergarten classrooms, specialized instruction classrooms and labs, a media center, a gymnasium and a combination cafeteria/auditorium space.

Hall Construction Company Inc. of Howell, N.J., was awarded a $34.9 million contract for design and construction of the new school, which is being built using a design-build approach. Hall is also working with DIGroup Architecture of New Brunswick, N.J., on the design. Greyhawk North America LLC, headquartered in Mount Laurel, N.J., is the construction manager for the project.

The school is anticipated for student occupancy in September 2016.

In addition to work on P.S. 16, the SDA is also constructing the new 108,700-square-foot Marshall Street Elementary School on the corner of Hazel and Marshall in Paterson. Marshall Street Elementary is designed to accommodate approximately 650 students in kindergarten through eighth grade. Upon completion, the school will house 23 general classrooms, four kindergarten classrooms, specialized instruction classrooms and labs, a media center, gymnasium, similar cafeteria/auditorium space and a community room.

“The construction of two new elementary schools — School 16 as well as Hazel & Marshall — is great news for our school district and this city,” said State District Superintendent Donnie Evans, Ed.D, in a statement. “Our students deserve to receive a quality education in facilities that meet 21st century learning standards; and we thank the SDA for honoring their commitment to open both schools for the 2016 school year. We also look forward to continued collaboration with the SDA on meeting additional facilities needs as represented in our new five-year facilities plan.”

In recent years, the SDA has invested nearly $290 million in completed projects in Paterson alone including six capital projects and 56 health and safety/grant/emergent projects, according to a statement. The SDA’s current portfolio of active projects is valued at approximately $2 billion — including the Capital Project Portfolio, emergent projects and Regular Operating District grants.

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“Just a few months ago, we were in Keansburg to break ground for this project,” said SDA CEO Charles McKenna, in a statement. “As this new school continues to take shape and this signed beam becomes a permanent part of the structure, we are reaffirming this Administration’s commitment to providing the students of Keansburg with a state-of-the-art facility.”

The new Joseph C. Caruso Elementary School is the first new school in the area constructed by the SDA, and will stand on the same site as the former 58,000-square-foot school of the same name. It was designed to accommodate 750 K-4 students across 28 general use classrooms, eight kindergarten classrooms, self-contained special education classrooms, a modern media center, a gym and a new cafetorium — a facility that can serve as either a gym or an auditorium. The project also includes administrative and support facilities, as well as outdoor physical education and play areas and parking.

"The reality of the new Caruso Elementary School rising up fuels the hopes and dreams of all future generations in the Keansburg School District. It is with great excitement and anticipation that we look forward to our students having a 21st century facility to initiate their educational journey,” said Keansburg Superintendent Gerald North, in a statement.

Hall Construction Company Inc. of Howell, N.J. and Paulus, Sokolowski and Sartor, LLC of Warren, N.J. are collaborating on the design-build project, which is being managed by Joseph Jingoli & Sons of Lawrenceville, N.J. Current projections put the cost of the school at just less than $51 million, and construction completion is anticipated for late summer 2016.

Demolition on the original school facility was completed by Tricon Enterprises Inc. of Keyport, N.J. in June 2013. At that time, NJ.com reported that the work turned up an exciting find: a 91-year-old time capsule. The capsule revealed a December 1921 edition of the local Keansburg Beacon newspaper, as well as photographs and a program of the capsule’s dedication ceremony.

Officials broke ground on the school in mid December 2014. Construction is estimated to comprise $32.7 million of the total project cost.

Progress on the new elementary school can be viewed via webcam at http://oxblue.com/open/hallgc/caruso.

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The New Jersey Schools Development Authority will use proceeds from the bonds for a portion of its 1,004 ongoing grant projects in Regular Operating Districts and 50 projects in various stages of development in School Development Authority districts, all of which fall under the state’s $12.5 billion school construction plan. 

In April, the NJSDA reported 12 projects under construction, including new middle or elementary schools in Camden, East Orange, Elizabeth, Passaic City, Paterson, Union City, and West New York. Other projects include a new elementary/middle school in Egg Harbor City, a new high school in Greater Egg Harbor, and an early childhood center in Pemberton Township. New Jersey has another 134 projects planned statewide to address health and safety issues. 

Approximately 618 projects in NJSDA districts have been completed since the state’s multi-billion dollar school construction plan was introduced in 2001, including 54 new schools and 44 extensive additions. The program originally set aside $8.9 billion for NJSDA districts and $3.6 billion for RODs. 

New Jersey will sell taxable Build America Bonds for the most recent round of school construction program funding, receiving a federal subsidy equal to 35 percent of interest payments. 

Read about New Jersey’s school construction capital plan at: www.njsda.gov/Schools/index.html

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