In addition to demolishing withered facilities, schools are finding themselves taking a sledgehammer to something else in light of the pandemic: building improvement plans themselves.
“They’ve had to revisit the size of their portfolio and facilities” for school construction projects, said Tracy Richter, a former educator and current vice president of planning services for HPM, a management firm that oversees district construction projects.
Supply chain issues, labor shortages, changing enrollment patterns and funding sources are throwing a wrench in districts’ efforts to revamp buildings, said Richter and school district business experts.