Long months of building studies, site tours, engineering evaluations, systems estimates, and countless hours of meetings culminated Thursday evening. The Duchesne County School Board finished review of a 20-year building and facilities master plan that will cost an estimated $90 million during two phases of planned construction and renovation.

Inherent in any long term plan is the moving target of costs. Inflation, recession, market economies, construction labor costs and materials are impossible to accurately predict. All estimated costs remain just that, estimates until it comes time to actually build.

“Every year we need to look at the projections and adjust the estimated costs,” school district accountant Dee Miles said.

Even in recent projects, the costs have fluctuated as construction began.

“For an example, we were planning on a million and a half on East Elementary and it came back at two and a half (million dollars),” board president Kim Harding said. “That wouldn’t have been so bad, except we were planning on a million and a half.”

Harding wants the public to understand that these numbers are the best the district can come up with at the time.

“These numbers are subject to change with the economy and with our growth,” he said. “They are not locked in.”

The deterioration of existing buildings, and a need to keep up with predicted growth in the area have pushed the school board to plan carefully for future development of schools and facilities.

“With all the evaluations of every facility in the district, I feel (the long term plan) has evolved into something that has firmed up,” principal architect for KMA Architects Kevin Madson said. “We’ve gone through and rated the schools according to need for replacement.”

Plans call for a new South Elementary School in Roosevelt on 500 East starting sometime in 2015, and a new Union High School campus to be located on school district property on Lagoon Street starting in 2019. Other construction during a 10 year period would call for replacement elementary schools in Duchesne and Altamont. East Elementary School would be replaced later in 2027.

Major renovations would take place on almost every building remaining in the district to keep them usable. Duchesne High School would get the Phase III improvements, that have been on the books for years, starting in 2020.

Superintendent David Brotherson wants the public to understand that virtually every building in every community has been considered in the long-range plan.

Construction costs will require general obligation bonds to complete the planned construction projects. The school district is establishing a schedule to retire existing debt to keep bond costs as low as possible.

The school board has looked continually for public input.

Public attendance at the advertised long range master plan work meeting last week was zero. The school board directed the architects to prepare the long range plan in hard copy with best estimates for projected costs included. The completed written plans should be ready for board review at the February school board meeting.

The public will have a chance to offer input on the long-range master plan at public hearings, which are scheduled to be held in conjunction with the March board meeting in Roosevelt and the April board meeting in Duchesne.