Due to an unfavorable bidding climate, construction of an ag facility at Powell High School won’t begin until next year.

The Park County School District No. 1 Board of Trustees voted on June 25 to reject the lone bid it received for the project, a $937,353 proposal from Heart Mountain Construction.

Bids were due by June 18, when contractors already had projects underway or planned.

“The timeline really hurt us,” Superintendent Jay Curtis told the school board. “Because not only did we bid at kind of a difficult time, but on top of that, we kind of have an abbreviated timeline of completion, and I think both of those were factors.”

The district had reached out to multiple companies about the proposed facility, which was slated to be completed in early 2020.

“We were hoping that several of the larger companies — Groathouse, Sletten — would show an interest in bidding the project,” Curtis said. “The answer that we kept getting was, ‘We’re booked up.’”

The superintendent and fellow administrators proposed going out for bids again later this year, with a potential start date in the early spring.

“…We think that it’s going to be a much more favorable bidding climate,” Curtis told the board.

An advantage to building in the spring is that the completion date can be more flexible, “so some of those larger companies might be interested in doing it, kind of fitting it in as they go between other projects,” he said.

“I think if we say, ‘No, you need to have it done in two months,’ they’re going to bid accordingly, because they’re losing out on the opportunity to bid other jobs during that time,” Curtis said.

Board vice chairman Trace Paul asked if contractors expressed interest in the project, and Curtis said they did, with it being just a matter of timing.

School administrators also don’t believe the facility is specced as a $937,000 building, Curtis said. Initially, the architect’s cost estimate for the project was roughly $750,000.

Curtis said they’ll review the plans to see if there are areas where they can value engineer to cut costs.

“We did a pretty significant value engineering already, but we have to live within our means,” he said.

The roughly 80-by-80-foot building located north of PHS is intended to offer students a variety of hands-on opportunities to learn about agriculture, from raising livestock to growing crops.

“What I’m looking forward to as much as anything is how we can use it as not only an extension of the classroom for the high school, but all the other people we can bring into this — all of the grade school, middle school and 4-H kids,” PHS ag teacher Bryce Meyer said earlier this year.

PHS students have been involved with the project from the early planning stages, and Meyer said student involvement is vital.

“It’s not my program, it’s not my barn, it’s not my FFA — it’s theirs,” Meyer told the school board in April. “I want them to take the reins.”

Students will be expected to properly care for animals and will be responsible for consistent cleaning of the pens and facility.

In addition to the educational opportunities, there’s also potential for the ag facility to be used for community gatherings, jackpot livestock shows, fundraisers and clinics for 4-H youth.

“I think we’re going to cultivate that interest at a younger age,” Meyer said.