[Panther1]

We've undertaken a few projects like these and I know a little about how much it costs for such things and 3.5 just seemed low for all that. So, I added up some rough numbers, some based on experience (athletic facilities), some based on guesswork...

They are getting turf

$800,000

with bleachers on both sides of the field

$400,000 (conservative...can be a LOT more if they "look nice")

and a student section in the endzone,

$10,000? (I'm assuming this will be a few sets of portable bleachers?)

new 8 lane track with high jump

,
$250,000 (this is what it cost about 5 years ago)

tennis courts

,
$250,000

new baseball field and stadium,

$400,000 (again, conservative estimate; if you want 1st class everything, it'll be more than that)

new concessions and lockerooms for the softball team,

$150,000 (VERY conservative guess...I know of one school that started this same exact project...estimated it at $100,000 and by the time they were done "getting it 'to code'" it was well over $300K.)

new health and fitness center,

$2,000,000? probably low depending on what kind of quality they go for in training equipment. I would guess at Johnson Co. they'd only get the best stuff though.

new lockers inside the school,

$200,000? probably low...there's a LOT of students in that school

new ceiling tile

$25,000? Not sure what this means, but I assume at the least it's one student-accessible computer with internet access -- and that's a WHOLE lot of classrooms!

and every classroom in the county will now be certified 21st century.

$500,000

$4,985,000...and that's after CONSERVATIVE guessing on some things (like the classrooms, the lockers, the ceiling tiles); it's also assuming everything in the project was mentioned.

If that whole project comes in for under 3.5mil, that contractor's going to be in HIGH demand!

Good luck to JC on this though. It's VERY good to see a school system realize the value of strong extracurriculars in EVERY area. Whatever it does cost, they will reap rewards in the future well beyond the cost!