Estancia High’s $42M theater back on track in new location, slated for completion in 2024
After ongoing debates and site relocation delayed construction plans for nearly one year, a long held promise by Newport-Mesa Unified School District to build a $42-million performing arts complex at Estancia High School is back on track.
School board members Tuesday approved securing a contractor through a lease-leaseback construction delivery model that will allow the district to “lease” the project site to the builder for the duration of construction and then take it back once the work has been complete
Now that an agreement has been reached with Northern California-based Flint Builders, Inc., initial site work could begin early next year with approval from the Division of State Architect (DSA) expected in summer, Ara Zareczny, NMUSD’s director of facilities development, confirmed Wednesday.
If all goes according to plan, construction is anticipated to wrap by the end of 2024.
That anticipated deadline is the first hint at when the complex — which includes a 350-seat theater and lobby, a black box theater and backstage areas — could open since the project in July was shifted northward from the southeast corner of the Costa Mesa campus to a parking lot area.
The move followed debate over a proposal to remove a nearly 1-acre senior lawn with mature trees, including a lawsuit filed by the city of Costa Mesa. After board members approved the relocation, the suit was dropped.
Zareczny explained a lease-leaseback agreement will streamline the redesign and building process. Under a traditional “design-bid-build” model, designers submit plans to DSA with no input from builders. Once the state signs off, those plans cannot be easily altered or amended.
When contractors review the plans and see what they consider omissions, mistakes or shortcomings, they might bid lower on a project, anticipating necessary “fixes” can be billed later as change orders, additional expenses the district must pay to finish the work.
Because school districts are required by law to accept the lowest bid for a construction project, officials may later be forced to approve change orders that have driven up costs far beyond what’s been budgeted.
“The last time we bid the project [in the first location], the spread between the three contractors who bid was $31 million to $33 million to $37 million — they all saw something different,” Zareczny said.
By contrast, the lease-leaseback method reduces excessive change orders, precisely because the builder is able to weigh in on plans before they’re submitted.
Although the mechanism of how the builder is paid is complex and involves variable pay schedules based on how quickly different tasks are completed, the term of the lease is 18 months from DSA approval. Any amendments to those terms would be subject to a vote from the board.
After working on the project and its different iterations over the last several years, Zareczny admitted it was nice to have a work crew lined up.
“From my perspective, staff is excited that we have some movement on the project,” she said Wednesday. “We have a full team comprised of a construction manager, general contractor and architects in place, and we can just move forward and do our jobs.”
Despite delays on the new theater, members of Estancia High’s drama department on Thursday were busy preparing for the opening that night of a new production of “Little Women,” which will run through Sunday, at 7 p.m., in the school’s Barbara Van Holt Theater.
Amber Marroquin, a 2017 Estancia graduate recently tapped to replace longtime drama director Pauline Maranian, took a moment Thursday to express her appreciation that the project is gaining steam.
“This theater will be the home of lifelong memories for our students,” she wrote in an email. “It will be a joyous day when the theater finally opens!”
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