Next Tuesday’s “topping off” ceremony, where the final steel construction beam at the new Sandy Hook Elementary School is signed by the entire construction team and hoisted into place, will mark a significant milestone in the critical local building project that one key official involved said is going extremely well.

Public Building and Site Commission Chair Robert Mitchell had high praise for everyone including the architects, building contractors, the project management. He also acknowledged the contributions of his own committee whose volunteer members have collectively devoted hundreds of hours to overseeing thousands of details going back to before the original building, scarred by the 12/14 tragedy, was even being considered for demolition and replacement.

He said a topping off activity Tuesday, June 30, marks the completion of a key phase of the project’s prolonged development.

While trying not to be a too frequent presence on the school building site, Mr Mitchell, a commercial architect by trade, said he has seen enough of the recent progress to clearly identify specific wings and features as the facility rises from its foundation.

“I’ve been out there enough to say it’s beginning to look like a real school building,” Mr Mitchell told The Bee June 24. “With the floors and walls going up, you can really see it as a school now in relation to the plans.”

And by September, Mr Mitchell said he expects so much of the building to be completed that anyone visiting the site would clearly identify the project as a school building.

“The steel frame going up gave us a great perspective on its size,” he said. “But now with the walls going up, you get a sense of where each of the wings will be and some of the basic layout, including the auditorium area.”

A few days earlier, Project Manager Geralyn Hoerauf of Diversified Project Management released the latest images of the construction, which were taken by a company photographer chronicling the construction process. Those images show A-wing exterior and interior progress, the B-wing steel erection near completion, and the slab recently poured for the C-wing’s foundation.

During the PBSC’s most recent meeting, Mr Mitchell said his commissioners authorized building aspects for the art programs and the two exterior playgrounds (see separate story). He was thrilled that those features have come in at about 20 percent lower cost than estimated, adding that it bodes well for the town to possibly return some of the $50 million granted by the state once the project is complete and occupied.

Mr Mitchell said some additional refunding could come from two contingency accounts established for the projects.

He explained that change orders in the construction process that account for new costs typically come from one or both of the contingency budgets, but at this stage of construction, many of the big ticket issues that might tap contingency money are complete.

“You don’t want change orders on a project of this scope to exceed two percent of the overall cost,” he said. “And with most of the expensive work done that would typically draw contingency money, we have used about half of one percent of the funds. I’m not concerned at all with the amount of contingency used to date — in fact it’s the mark of a successful project to have this much left in those funds at this stage of construction.

“Don’t forget, we’re obliged to return any leftover grant money to the state, and at this point, I can’t imagine we will use all that money.”

He praised the entire team involved with the school project’s development.

“The commission can’t say enough about all the project workers,” Mr Mitchell said. “We’re impressed by Consigli [Construction], Geralyn the project manager, and the entire design team, who I know are working ten-hour days to be sure they get us done on time. We can’t think of a better team — they bring the professionalism and imagination that will make this a very special project.”

The building commission chairman said that details and reports are so well-prepared and thorough, that when commissioners convene for meetings, there are few issues left to question or concerns investigate.

“It’s the kind of professional treatment Newtown should expect on a $50 million project,” Mr Mitchell said.