(New Haven, CT) – Mayor Toni N. Harp announced that the City of New Haven School Construction Program has exceeded hiring goals for women, minorities, and New Haven residents with completion of three schools in 2017.
What’s more, the initiative continues to provide meaningful construction-related work for minorities, women, and city residents. Since 2014, workers in these categories logged more than 250,000 hours on the construction of New Haven’s Engineering & Science University Magnet School (ESUMS), the Dr. Reginald Mayo Early Childhood School and the NEW HAVEN ACADEMY
“Construction of these schools resulted in $8.0 million in payroll wages to New Haven residents, a remarkable and noteworthy transfer of wealth into local neighborhoods,” Mayor Harp said. “In fact, New Haven Academy set a new record with 46 percent city resident workers over the entire history of the School Construction Program.”
Hiring goals for minority, women, and resident workers were increased under a new Mayor Harp Project Labor Agreement (PLA) that helped achieve better participation rates.
New Haven operates the largest school construction program in the state. Begun in 1995, the Citywide School Construction Program has evolved into a national model for its massive scope, innovative financing and high degree of community participation and involvement. The program encompassed 42 school construction projects, all approved by the State of Connecticut and City of New Haven, totaling approximately $1.7 billion in building investment.
In addition, the overall workforce hours’ average for New Haven residents increased from 20% to 24% and the women workforce hours overall increased from 6% to 7.7%. New Haven Academy had overall 55% minority workforce hours. New Haven Public Schools Operations and School Construction Divisions, Construction Managers: Gilbane, Fusco, A. Prete, Giordano, the City (CEO), and Architects: Ken Borsoson, Svigals and Partners and BL Companies did an exceptional job in increasing local, MBE and WBE participation on the most recent projects
“Economic Development continues at an impressive rate in New Haven and nowhere is that more evident – or more important – than in the city’s outstanding public schools,” stated Matthew Nemerson, the city’s Economic Development Administrator. “Not only does this provide an environment conducive to better educating our children, but it provides more jobs and economic opportunity for their parents, as well.”
“Perhaps our greatest responsibility is the education of our children and thanks to the New Haven Citywide School Construction and Sustainability Program, we are building better schools to create state of the art learning, energy efficient and safe learning environments which help us achieve that goal,” stated New Haven Public Schools Interim Superintendent Dr. Reginald Mayo. “I am proud that we are able to do so, while also helping provide needed jobs to City residents and minority owned businesses.”
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