Newark Breaks Ground On $70M South Street Elementary School

NEWARK, NJ — As Newark’s students settle into a new school year, administrators marked their progress towards the construction of a new, $70 million South Street Elementary School with a groundbreaking ceremony on Friday.

The new, 103,000 square foot facility will serve up to 657 students in grades pre-kindergarten through eight, the New Jersey Schools Development Authority (SDA) stated in a news release.

Once complete, the school will include 29 general classrooms, two science labs, six small group instruction rooms, a computer/technology lab, a world languages classroom, instrumental and vocal music rooms, an art room, a media center, a multipurpose room with stage, a cafeteria, a gymnasium and a separate parking area adjacent to the new facility, the SDA stated.

Ernest Bock & Sons, Inc. of Philadelphia, PA, was awarded a $36.9 million design-build contract for the design and construction of the school. As part of the design-build contract, Ernest Bock & Sons Inc. is working with SSP Architectural Group of Bridgewater on the design. The project is being managed by STV Construction of New York.

The total estimated project cost is $69.9 million, the SDA stated.

“The construction of the South Street School and the two new schools that SDA opened in Newark earlier this year, mark a new beginning for the thousands of students who will walk the halls of these facilities,” CEO Charles McKenna said.

Photo: New Jersey Schools Development Authority

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