Work will start at the site of the Sandy Hook Permanent Memorial this week. Public Buildings and Site Commission Chair Robert Mitchell says the goal is still to have the project completed by December 14, 2022, ten years after the shooting at the elementary school that claims the lives of 20 children and 6 educators. Voters approved $3.7 million for the memorial at 28 Riverside Road, and plans have been scaled back to meet the budget while remaining true to the proposed concept.
The Sandy Hook Boys’ Social and Athletic Club signed over the field, near the new school, was signed to Newtown in 2017.
Downes Construction project manager Jeff Anderson says an eight-foot construction fence will go up around the property to shield the work from the general public. Underground runoff basins will be installed at the upper field before the parking lot is paved.
Mitchell says they are under the budget, including potential alternates and contingencies. He says they may change one aspect so another portion can be improved, but will never go over the guaranteed maximum price. The Board of Selectmen voted last week to accept the GMP for the contract with Downes.
