Both the construction of the STEAM building and the new Performing Arts Center will continue on schedule, according to an H1 update released on May 13. Throughout the pandemic, Piedmont Unified School District (PUSD) and the construction team have adjusted worksite conditions and amended the construction budget in order to account for safety requirements and economic uncertainty.
STEAM Building
The STEAM building will be completed this August, program consultant Julie Moll said in an email. The construction team has extended working hours in order to compensate for the loss of efficiency due to social distancing, while also trying to prioritize worker safety, Moll said.
“The District’s general contractor, Overaa, has a full-time employee at the STEAM site to monitor and ensure compliance with distancing and hygiene protocols, and to do daily disinfecting and sterilizing,” Moll said.
To prepare for the opening of the STEAM building, professional movers have packed the contents of the classrooms and offices in the 10s, 20s, and 30s buildings according to the H1 update. 
Freshman Sofia Prieto Black said that she is excited to experience the brand new features of the STEAM building as soon as school reopens.
“I‘m really looking forward to [being] in the new STEAM building and am excited to have more space, new and improved materials and resources the classrooms will provide, and hopefully have classes with a view,” Prieto Black said.
But the best part of the STEAM building will be reuniting with classmates and teachers in a new space after weeks of quarantine, sophomore Mara Lovric said.
“Because we haven’t been at school for so long and because of the continuing uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus, coming back to school is going to be a really exciting moment for all of us,” Lovric said. “Personally, I’m just looking forward to the moment when we all get to be together and learn together, so that will be the best part about the STEAM building for me.”
Performing Arts Center
In light of the uncertainty presented by the coronavirus pandemic, the construction team and the School Board have considered delaying the demolition of the 10s building and the construction of the new Performing Arts Center. At their May 13 meeting, however, the Board decided to move forward with demolition and construction unless guidance from state officials necessitates extra room for social distancing, according to the Measure H1 website.
“The reasons for considering a delay include concerns over the sufficiency of contingency funds, an interest in redesign to reduce overall cost, and, mostly recently, preserving the 10s building for increased social distancing,” according to a May 13 update addressed to the Board by PUSD superintendent Randall Booker.
However, these initial concerns were ultimately outweighed by the financial and educational cost of delaying construction; according to Booker’s address to the Board, the delay would not only increase the cost of construction significantly, but it would also harm the acting program by leaving students without a theater for a longer period of time.
Sophomore Zoe Saldanha said that while the prospect of the new theater is exciting, she is worried about the safety of the workers if the construction of the Performing Arts Center continues as planned.
“Though I would love to have theater by my senior year, I feel that it is selfish for us to be endangering people’s lives in order to have a new building,” Saldanha said. “While the STEAM building was already under construction, starting a new project feels a little irresponsible.”
Budget updates
COVID-19’s effect on the H1 budget has largely been covered by the project’s contingency funds, or backup money set aside for unanticipated situations, construction management consultant Trish Culbert said. 
“[PUSD] expects to pay up to $100,000 for worker overtime to ensure timely completion of the STEAM building with appropriate social distancing of workers,” Culbert said. “These overtime costs are covered by contingency funds set aside for this purpose.”
In addition to worker overtime, PUSD has needed to compensate for added costs due to new state standards for construction by cutting down on construction expenses, according to the H1 update.
“Due to additional structural requirements imposed by California’s Division of State Architect, [the Performing Arts Center] project costs initially rose an estimated $1.2 million,” according to the H1 update. “Nonetheless, the District has more than offset these increases through value engineering and scope reductions and deferrals.”
In light of budget cuts and economic uncertainty, Saldanha said she hopes that the District budget will continue to prioritize the wellbeing of construction workers, teachers, and staff members.
“I know that our school is going to be facing budget cuts and would hope that the district would be able to allocate the resources they are putting into construction towards protecting our teachers and staff,” Saldanha said. “It may be too late to put that money elsewhere, but I would hope that the district employees’ well-being comes before the construction of a new building.”
