Anxious over the prospect of cost overruns and the possibility that the $350 million approved by voters to build new Pilgrim and Toll Gate High Schools could be short of what’s needed, Mayor Frank Picozzi is looking to delay the planning process and extend the construction timetable for the schools.

But David Testa, chair of the Warwick School Committee, fears if that happens, it could jeopardize the reimbursement of about $55 million in state funding. Meanwhile, given the fact that the City Council has yet to grant release of the bond approved by 58.7 percent of the voters in November, time is running short to comply with the Dec. 31 state deadline to start construction as set forth in a memorandum of agreement signed by the school committee last June and the RI Department of Education (RIDE) on July 11, 2022. The agreement boosts the state’s reimbursement by 17.5 percent from 35 to 52.5 percent of the eligible refund. According to the RIDE agreement project management, design fees and other soft costs shall not exceed 20 percent of the total of the general construction costs and that total expenditures shall not exceed $314,559,510.

On Tuesday, Picozzi said he would like to push back the start of the construction deadline.

“It’s getting dicey to get that done now,” said Picozzi. Buying more time, he believes, would allow for things to stabilize and for the city to gain a clearer picture of what the schools will cost eliminating overruns and giving the city the new schools, which he supports.

Looking at what’s happening in other districts building new schools – the projected cost of a super elementary school in Johnston that was first calculated at $200 million is now $220 million – Picozzi said “no other city is doing that (delaying construction) and they could be saving.”

Picozzi would like to see RIDE push the start deadline ahead by a year.

This was news to Testa. He said the schools and the city administration have been talking about seeking legislative approval to extend the five year window to build and have the schools operational to seven years, which he thinks makes sense.

“So it's a huge Riverboat gamble to shoot for an extension on the front-end because we're not the only district looking to do significant projects. Middletown (Senator DiPalma) is also looking at new schools so I think he'd ask for the same thing. It'll be a while for that 'sausage to be made'...” Testa wrote in  a text.

In an earlier text he wrote, “The extension on the back end (to finish the project) is fine and was already discussed and would most likely be granted. The 'front-end' extension is a very different kettle of fish. As I understand it, we need to have a Construction Mgr. or Contractor in place for December or we'll lose the 17.5% incentives built into the reimbursement – roughly $55 million. For us to get a CM or Contractor in place, we need to have an actual design which would normally take 10-12 months. As it is, if we make the March (council) docket and get approved, we have a seriously compressed timeline to get the buildings designed.”

The mayor and members of the administration were scheduled to have met last Friday. That meeting was canceled and is now scheduled to take place this Friday.