Increased gas prices, grocery bills and everyday expenses have taken a toll. How has inflation affected you? 

No doubt you’re spending more on everything you buy. Higher prices touch everyone including school districts like 27J. But by taking a proactive approach to rising costs, 27J planners are helping the district stretch public dollars dedicated to bond-funded new schools and projects.

The ultimate goal: the cost-conscious completion of new schools and enhancements. This is promised as part of the voter approved $515 million bond initiative passed last November. Through value-focused engineering and design modifications, 27J project planners have already been able to save several million dollars on projects that would have cost more due to inflation.

“The construction team strives to be good stewards of the bond funds, to deliver quality projects for the 27J community” said Ben Dahlman, 27J Schools Bond Director.

As an example, 27J uses a prototype design to build new elementary and middle schools. This means with some architectural design modifications for site conditions, the construction documents for a previously built school can be used again. This can save more than $700,000 in architectural fees.  

If you’ve purchased fuel, lumber or home renovation supplies recently, you know firsthand how costs have skyrocketed. To stay on budget, 27J project planners scaled back the size of the new Brighton High School STEM/CTE addition by a little more than 5,000 sq./ft., saving more than $2.3 million . The center is creatively designed to preserve all the functionality and space needed for robust education programs. Similar adjustments are slated for other bond projects, too. 

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“To counter double digit increases in costs, we may cut back on some square footage or change some aesthetics to stay on budget,” Dahlman said. “But we don’t compromise on the structure and materials that make our buildings last, because strong structures provide good value.”

Read below or click here for a more detailed list of smart spending and savvy saving measures by 27J schools. And remember, 27J is committed to building strong schools for strong communities while honoring the investment of district taxpayers and building stronger schools for stronger communities.