The North Summit School District is still working on finding funding to build a new high school, but the winning proposal sheds some key insight into the overall construction process, including cost and a potential timeline.
VCBO Architecture, the firm that designed Park City Hospital and Newpark Resort, submitted a statement of interest and qualifications to the school board earlier this year in response to the district’s request for proposal regarding the design of a new high school. The board in April unanimously voted to accept VCBO Architecture as its firm for the project.
However, North Summit Business Administrator Marci Sargent said the school district and the architecture firm are still negotiating pricing.
Sargent added that the process has been slightly different than a typical request for proposal because the school district was looking for statements of interest rather than an official bid with pricing attached.
But the firm’s statement of interest and qualifications, which The Park Record obtained through an open records request, provides a clue regarding the overall cost of building a new high school.
VCBO Architecture pointed to its previous work on four high schools — Timpview High School in Provo, Farmington High School in Davis County, Deseret Peak High School in Tooele County and a high school in Saratoga Springs that’s still under construction — as examples of similar projects the firm has successfully undertaken.
Of the four schools, Farmington High School was the least expensive example with a price tag of almost $76 million for a 405,000-square-foot building in 2018.
The new high school in Saratoga Springs, however, is the most expensive. Construction is expected to be completed in 2028, and the 390,000-square-foot building costs $180 million.
Deseret Peak High School, which is expected to open soon and welcome students for the 2025-26 academic year, had a $139 million price tag for 336,000 square feet.
The proposal does not indicate whether inflation, material costs or other factors are behind the differences in price for the four high schools.
Additionally, VCBO Architecture provided a tentative timeline for the project, starting with a 10- to 12-month window for architects to design the building and recreation facilities, including a new swimming pool. The firm estimated design needs to be complete by April 2026 to begin the bidding process for contractors and materials the following month.
“To meet the occupancy deadline of August 2028, construction must be substantially complete by June 2028, providing time for project closeout and move-in,” the firm’s proposal states. “Given current market conditions, a school of this size will require at least 24 months to construct, meaning construction must begin by June 2026.”
The current high school hasn’t had any major modifications since its original construction in 1977. District officials told the public last summer that reinvesting in the structure would be more costly than building a new school, and the school board proposed a $114 million general obligation bond to fund the project.
Community members immediately spoke out against the bond proposal, though, citing increased property taxes, inflation, poverty levels and other economic concerns. Ultimately, the bond failed with 56% of voters opposed.
Now the school board is considering two options to fund construction: a second general obligation bond attempt in November or a lease revenue bond, which has a higher interest rate and does not require voter approval.
Discussions regarding funding were largely on hold following Superintendent Jerre Holmes’ retirement announcement in February. At the time, the school board said they preferred to have input from whoever the superintendent would be throughout the design and construction process.
But in the same meeting the school board chose VCBO Architecture as its design firm, they also appointed North Summit Middle School Principal Wade Murdock to the superintendent position.
North Summit High School is not currently listed as an agenda item for the school board’s next meeting on May 14, but discussions are expected to pick up again soon with a new superintendent officially in place and the November election just over the horizon.