A Study Details Hatboro-Horsham School Improvements. See Details.

HATBORO / HORSHAM TOWNSHIP, PA — A study unveiled at Monday night's meeting states that costs to upgrade Hatboro-Horsham schools would cost at least $118 million over 10 years.

The facilities study — produced by CHA Consulting and Schradergroup Architecture — presented to the Hatboro-Horsham School Board detailed how the district could maintain schools and provide a long-term capital improvement plan over the next decade.

Director of Business Affairs Bill Stone said that the upgrades would cost about $118 million if made now. He expects costs to rise much higher due to inflation and other issues impacting goods and services.

The study states that Hatboro-Horsham High School needs the most work.

These are some of the study's findings:

• Hatboro-Horsham High School would need $65.7 million in upgrades: A new HVAC system ($25.9 million), electrical work ($7.67 million), lighting ($7.3 million), a fire alarm system ($4.4 million), athletics ($3.2 million), and other work ($6 million).
• Simmons Elementary would need $33.6 million for a new HVAC system ($10.9 million), swimming pool decommissioning ($8 million), and electrical and lighting ($4.2 million).
• Blair Mill Elementary, which was built in 1968 and will be the district’s oldest school building at the end of the school year, would need $15.2 million. That work would include HVAC ($7.2 million), internal lighting ($1.8 million), and electrical work ($1.1 million).

The district has prioritized the work needed into different categories: critical, serious, and necessary.

School officials said that some of the critical improvements have already been completed.

Meanwhile, the school district's population is also expected to grow over the next decade.

The Montgomery County Planning Commission told the school board that the district could expect "moderate growth" with the addition of about 222 children, the majority reported for the middle school and high school.

The new Keith Valley Middle School is expected to open in September.