Designers, builders set for buildings

Published 1:30 am Monday, April 27, 2026

SEQUIM — Lead design and builder contracts have been approved for the initial stages of Sequim School District’s construction bond projects, including a new Helen Haller Elementary, a renovated Sequim High School and a new Career and Technical Education building.

The district’s board unanimously approved two contracts on April 13, one for Helen Haller Elementary’s progressive design-build validation contract worth $751,650 with Absher Construction and McGranahan PK Architects.

The board also approved a preconstruction contract worth $389,430 plus a 10 percent contingency with FORMA Construction to serve as the district’s general contractor/construction manager (GC/CM) for the high school and CTE building called the Ramponi Center for Technical Excellence.

Mike Santos, the district’s facilities director, said the validation contract for Helen Haller Elementary is the initial collaborative stage where the district and planners refine the scope, budget and schedule.

They will determine the school’s schematic design, placement and footprint, and also lead community and staff outreach.

Once the validation report is finished, the district and Absher and McGranahan will discuss the final design and set a guaranteed maximum price for construction.

Santos said the agencies worked with the school district to come down from an original $1.5 million offer for the validation contract.

The validation contract is set for completion by Aug. 18, according to district documents.

For the high school and CTE building, FORMA, as the GC/CM, will work with previously selected architecture firm Mahlum on the preconstruction process, a design, budgeting and permitting process.

Santos said FORMA has to be involved in the preconstruction process so it can go forward with a schematic design and determine shapes, sizes, square footage and other particulars with the projects along with its guaranteed maximum construction price.

FORMA and Mahlum were set to begin discussions earlier this month, he said.

The agencies were recommended from different Source Selection Committees of school leaders and consultants after two months of deliberations, Santos said.

Both the new high school and elementary school are part of the February 2025 20-year, $146 million voter-approved bond. The CTE building will be built in unison with the high school using separate monies from the state and donations.

The CTE building, a 10,000-square-foot building with classroom space and two bays for industrial grade training, will be substantially complete by February 2028, according to district documents.

The high school is tentatively slated for substantial completion by July 2029. The school’s A, B, C, D and E buildings will be replaced and connected to existing structures.

A date for the new elementary school’s completion is to be determined through the validation report. It will tentatively sit behind the existing school.

Work is underway on other bond projects, Santos said.

A proposal is pending for eventual board approval for Mahlum to lead architecture and engineering for Greywolf Elementary’s planned cafeteria addition, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) replacement, and bus loop/parking lot remodel.

Santos said having Mahlum do those elements will save time and money.

Mahlum also is helping the district assess potential sites for a new transportation center. Santos said the current site on Third Avenue is impractical.

District staff previously said the facility is deteriorating and has poor drainage.

An exterior security camera design draft for the district also is complete, Santos said. Upgraded security measures are part of the bond package.

Other project elements include adding a bus loop between Fir Street and Sequim Middle School, and upgrading the district’s athletic field and stadium.

Work on the field and stadium must be done after Helen Haller is constructed due to their proximity to each other and utilities and structures involved, Santos previously said.

For more information about the bond, visit sequimschools.org/bond_program.

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Matthew Nash is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. He can be reached by email at matthew.nash@sequimgazette.com. Nash has family employed by and enrolled in Sequim School District.