With inflation and continued supply chain issues, the Conroe ISD Board of Trustees agreed to add $10 million more in funding to its plan to renovate Conroe High School.
In February 2021, the board accepted the guaranteed maximum price of $144,998,625 for Phase 2 of the project. The project was part of the district’s 2019 bond package.
Easy Foster, director of planning and construction for the district, said the additional $10 million will come from 2019 bond savings, not the district’s general fund.
“From 2019 to 2022, we saw an almost 19% increase in construction costs and another 7% from 2022 to 2023,” Foster said during the board’s Nov. 14 meeting. “This is kind of unprecedented growth in construction costs.”
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Trustee Misty Odenweller asked why the district incurs those expenses, not the construction company. Foster said Ellisor Construction has worked to mitigate the increases but said other factors, including sub-contractors going out of business, have required securing new sub-contractors at higher costs.
Foster said while contingency funds were built into the project, there was no way to predict the larger increase.
“(Ellisor) and myself felt comfortable with $10 million,” Foster said. “We have a reasonable shot at finishing this project with this being the only request. But we do need to pay attention to what happens over the next 24 months.”
The district began the multi-phase renovation of Conroe High School in 2021. Prior to renovations at the school, there were seven buildings on campus with 120 exterior doors and for the 2022-23 school year.
By the end of the project, all of Conroe High School will be under one roof, and the main entrance will be facing the opposite direction on Wilson Road. At the back of campus, a band hall will be built as well as tennis courts.
The project is expected to be completed in Dec. 2025.
