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: