North Penn: First phase of high school work slated to start this month

 After years of discussion, work on renovations to North Penn High School could start as soon as this month.

School board members heard news that the first phase of the long-awaited renovations is almost ready to begin.

“Phase one, I’m sure everyone is familiar with, as far as K-pod, the natatorium, and some of the site work,” said project construction manager Jamie Lynch.

“We’re about to commence work beginning in the natatorium in late May, and K-pod after students are out for the summer,” he said.

Over the past several years, school board members and staff have held lengthy talks about renovations to the high school, with the latest plans splitting the project into two phases. The first would tackle the school’s K-pod and natatorium, and move a propane tank and fueling station currently at the rear of the school closer to the Valley Forge Road entrance, while the second phase would build a new addition between the current A-pod and H-pod at the current rear of the school, then move students into that addition as the remaining pods are renovated over several years.

    Project construction manager Jamie Lynch, inset, shows a map of North Penn High School colored to indicate several phases of renovations, during the school board facilities and operations committee meeting on Monday, April 28, 2025. (Screenshot of NPTV video)
  

During the board’s facilities and operations committee meeting in late April, and in a similar presentation to the full board, Lynch and project engineer Colin Case gave an update, saying the first phase of work is nearly ready to start, and the second phase plans are still being finalized.  Plans for phase two have been submitted to Towamencin’s planning commission for their input, and will likely be presented to that township’s supervisors in June or July “for what we expect to be final approval on the project.”   

“This has been quite an effort. In going through all of the requirements for a project of this size, there are many contributors associated with getting approvals and details for Towamencin Township. So we’re been working very hard,” Lynch said.

Zoning issues and concerns about fencing around the site’s radio towers have been resolved, the project construction manager added, so a request for a zoning hearing has been withdrawn as that board’s approval will no longer be needed.

“That hopefully expedites full and final approval of the project,” he said.

The district design team is coordinating with PECO on utility connections for the electricity and gas running to the site, and has begun procuring low-voltage panels and electrical gear with long lead time needed for phase two. The district is also working with the North Penn Water Authority to convey water lines below the site to the district, which will let district staff do certain repairs in-house without needing the authority be involved, Lynch told the committee. The district’s traffic engineer is also in contact with PennDOT about the site and related road improvements, including a request that PennDOT not require updated traffic counts since the ninth grade addition once proposed for the site is now out of the plans.

“Now we’re at the point of looking for county input on the ultimate plans for the widening of Sumneytown Pike, and associated with that work, there’s work that would be part of this project with curbs and sidewalks out there,” Lynch said.

“We’re trying to figure out the best way to navigate that process, meaning that some of that work will likely be deferred, because it will take some time for the Sumneytown improvements to be understood fully. There’s been a lot of cooperation there,” he said. A study examining a potential crosswalk on Sumneytown is currently underway, and early talks with the county have discussed a possibility of upgrades to a crosswalk on Snyder Road on the northern side of the site, Lynch said.

Plans for a new transportation building, including a dispatch center and maintenance garage for their bus fleet, are also being finalized as a “Phase 2A” and a contract for that building could be awarded by late summer, and a start date could depend on when permits are secured.

“A lot of work has been going on to coordinate that, and also to make sure the existing transportation building stays online,” Lynch said.

In addition to renovating the natatorium and K-pod, site work included in phase one will include relocating the current fuel tank and propane fueling station from their current location near Crawford Stadium, east on the site closer to the Valley Forge Road entrance, according to Lynch. The rough timeline for K-pod would see work on the third floor complete by roughly November of 2025, then the second floor by February 2026, and the first floor done by September 2026.

The bid package for phase two would include a new addition next to the school’s current A-pod that would start in fall 2026, then renovations to the current A-pod starting in summer 2026 and running thorough 2027, then B-pod from January to December 2027, followed by D and E pods from summer 2027 to the end of 2028, and C pod likely through calendar year 2029, Lynch told the board.

“We’ve been working hard on the phasing, on how we do this work, and manipulate construction through an operating school, working with Mr. (Pete) Nicholson to understand how many classrooms will be available at all times,” Lynch said.

A new phase three will likely be bid out in 2026 after the A-pod renovations are done, and would include renovations to H-pod and mechanical spaces in 2028, then G-pod from 2028 to 2029, F-pod and the high school auditorium in 2029-30, and J-pod, the school’s aux gym, and wrestling room, likely from summer 2029 to early 2030, the project construction manager said.

And a new phase four would largely cover site work, mainly to the front of the campus, including upgrades to stormwater systems under the school’s front parking lot, added lighting, milling and repaving of the front lot, bus loop, and driveways leading to Snyder Road and Valley Forge Road, plus anything else deferred during the earlier phases.

In the May 6 presentation, architect David Schrader added a series of renderings showing the new fixtures, finishes and layout of the new addition and rehabbed classrooms, addressing a series of questions from the board about specific features and furnishings in each area, while showing the two-story staircase at the entrance to the new addition.

The project manager also gave budget updates: the latest projections call for phase one including the K-pod and natatorium to total roughly $31 million, the transportation building around $9.2 million, phase two to total just under $126 million, then the new phase three to be roughly $88 million, and the phase four for sitework is estimated to total just over $4 million, with soft costs and contingencies included and a total estimated price tag of $259.5 million, in line with estimates discussed during talks on the bond borrowings needed for the project.

“We continue to be on that same budget that we talked about in 2024,” Lynch said.

    Project construction manager Jamie Lynch, inset, shows a map of North Penn High School colored to indicate several phases of renovations, during the school board facilities and operations committee meeting on Monday, April 28, 2025. (Screenshot of NPTV video)
  

“We’re trying to provide all of the strategies we know, in order to – A: get the scope right; B: attract the best contractors to the project, and C, which is the most important: to perform the work in an orderly fashion, and safely,” Lynch said.

North Penn’s school board next meets at 7 p.m. on May 15 and the facilities and operations committee next meets at 7 p.m. on May 27; for more information visit www.NPenn.org.

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