New Brac school budget leapt from $24M to over $60M
(CNS): The government initially budgeted just $24 million for the proposed new Cayman Brac high school, but between the Strategic Business Case, which first justified the project, to the Full Business Case, which was leaked into the public domain this week, the price tag for the school has more than doubled. It also includes another $10.6 million for the accommodation block to house the private sector contractors that will build the school, taking the estimated budget to around $60.6 million.
The Full Business Case was approved by Cabinet on 15 October, according to a brief summary of the meeting released Wednesday. The government has tried to keep the business case documents under wraps and efforts by CNS to secure them through an FOI request failed. However, the document was leaked this week and circulated to the media.
It outlines the need for a new facility on Cayman Brac for high school students on the island. When the project was first considered in 2022, there were 163 students. It noted the poor state of repair of the existing Layman Scott High School, constructed in the late 1960s, its inadequate facilities, cramped conditions, poor light, lack of a gym, and non-compliance with disability legislation.
Following the completion of the OBC, which is still not in the public domain, it was decided that an accommodation block would be built to house workers for the project to increase interest from contractors and boost competition to build the school.
According to the decision of the steering committee, after the school is built, the accommodation block will be used to house visiting sports teams, as the intention is to promote sports tourism in Cayman Brac, an idea that has been floated for about the last decade.
The final report states that at the OBC stage, the government decided to build an entirely new school and gym on the Bluff, even though its planned location is next to the existing new sports facilities. At the OBC stage, the choice was between improving and expanding the existing school, constructing a new school on the existing Cayman Brac Sports Complex site, and building a new school and gym next to the existing Cayman Brac Sports Complex site.
The document identifies a long list of problems associated with the existing high school, justifying the need for a new one. But it is not clear why the other two options — redeveloping the school on-site or building a school on the sports complex site — were rejected.
“The affordability envelope approved by Cabinet at the OBC stage for the overall project was $60.6m, $50m for the School and Gym plus $10.6m for the Accommodation Block and optimism bias. This figure is inclusive of FF&E, consultants’ fees and inflation but not IT equipment,” the report states. “In principle, the design brief for the Project presented in this FBC has not deviated materially from the OBC design brief. There have, however, been some changes as the design brief has evolved.”
It was at that stage that the price tag jumped from $24 million to $60.6 million for the overall project. According to the document, the preferred bidders are McAlpine Ltd and Arch & Godfrey in a joint venture.
While there are few details in this report about the leap in costs, it notes that during a series of value engineering workshops with members of the Steering Committee and the multi-disciplinary consultant team, a number of changes were incorporated in order to reduce costs and pursue value for money.
See the Full Business Case in the CNS Library.
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Category: development, Education, Local News
I don’t understand how the Chief Officer the Deputy Chief Officer the CFO the Senior Policy Officers the Deputy Governor etc can just sit by and watch our hard earned money go down the drain. Please please stop it this is my future I’m only 19 what debts are you leaving me in my people yes my people…
Elvis must have been sharing his stash with our deal old Premier.
$60 million for a building, meanwhile the majority of teachers in the public schools are from another island and we are still struggling with social/family issues which become barriers to learning.
This is utter madness! This will be just like the mental facility and the Clifton High School. Stop the madness!!!
Im sorry but we need an audit of this. Something is seriously wrong here. Money laundering or something. Every government department has to show a paper trail for where the money is allocated. Why aren’t we seeing one with this project!? It reeks of corruption.
“Accommodation for visiting sports teams”.
Really?
Why the big surprise?
why cant the workers that are going to build the 10 million temp housing facility just start building the school?
10mil to build temp costruction housing.
another 50 mil to build a school for 100 students?
Don’t need it. Don’t want it.
lol 60 mill to teach a few hundred kids to get low end jobs in the end.
en.
Juliana will destroy these islands! She should be in jail for major theft when she paved the entire brac including everyone’s private driveways and business parking lots.
Lock her up!
What government project in the millions has ever been within budget? We all know this is headed for 100m.
This is stealing, and mismanagement, i dont care how you try to dress it up. Any MLA’s voting for this should be investigated with this entire sham. 60 million! 60 Million! Get this the fffff outta here! Auditor General needs to pay very close attention to this.
LTD Da Unoozler
60 million? May as well buy the brac for that amount. Good god do these people know no bounds? Dept island. 60 million for a brac school seriously?
Jesus Christ. This is why shes talking nonsense about the UK.
She said she was going to retire, so why is she worried about the UK oversight on budget. Imagine if she actually did not retire and could control the finances. Brac would have a bigger airport, more docks, improved primary schools, brand new admin building, new museum, new dump and on and on.