Work is moving ahead on a new magnet school for sixth- through 12th-grade students, which is expected to usher in a broad array of new opportunities for students.
The Pasco County School Board approved a $52.7 million contract with Ajax Building Company, during the board’s Nov. 2 meeting.
The 6-12 school is planned on an 18.8-acre site within the community of Angeline, south of State Road 52, north of the future Ridge Road extension and west of Sunlake Boulevard.
The school board, acting as the Pasco County School Board Leasing Corporation, previously approved the sale of bonds to finance the new magnet school and to complete projects at Hudson and Gulf High schools. The sale of $80 million in bond was completed on Nov. 2.
The school site is within Angeline, which is being billed as a wellness community. Angeline will be developed on thousands of acres of land, east of the Suncoast Parkway and south of State Road 52.
Within that area, Moffitt is planning its Pasco County campus. The cancer center’s presence in Pasco is expected to include a massive research and corporate innovation district. It has site entitlements that encompass 24 million square feet, and include plans for a hospital, research and development space, office, manufacturing, laboratories, pharmacies, educational facility/university, hotel, and commercial space. The multiyear, multiphase project is expected to create 14,500 jobs.
At a previous school board meeting, Ray Gadd, deputy superintendent for Pasco County Schools, reported that Moffitt and Pasco-Hernando State College are working together “to develop a very unique school setting.”
The school is designed for 1,700 students, according to the Ajax contract.
Plans call for a facility with 186,882 gross square feet.
It will have:
- A one-story administration building
- A one-story dining/multipurpose area, with a fully functioning kitchen
- A two-story media and band area
- A four-story classroom wing
Other parts of the site development include parking, drives, walkway canopies, an aluminum shade system, fencing, a walking trail, sidewalks, underground utilities, landscaping, irrigation and other infrastructure.
Construction is expected to take 18 months, with the closeout taking 1.5 months, bringing the total to 19.5 months, according to the contract.
Substantial completion is expected in April of 2023, with a final completion in June of 2023.
Harvard Jolly is the architect on the school district project.
Published November 10, 2021
