Renton School District announced today that the opening of the new middle school, Vera Risdon Middle School, will be delayed by a year. The construction contractor for the project, Porter Brothers, gave notice to the district that they are unable to complete the new school construction as planned for the upcoming 2016-2017 school year.

“We’re disappointed that the school will not be ready to open in the fall of 2016, and we will continue to explore all avenues available to us,” said Interim Superintendent Art Jarvis in a press release. “But it is very evident that this will leave us in the position of delaying the opening of our new school until the fall of 2017. We certainly understand the disappointment this will bring to all, and especially for those students who have been looking forward to the opening of their new school.”

“We’re working with the construction company and architects to nail down exactly what the delay is,” said Randy Matheson, executive director of Community Relations. “Even though we’re working it out, we had to make the decision whether or not to open the school.”

According to Matheson, the construction company informed the district about the delay a week ago and that Jarvis has been meeting with various staff members to determine the best course of action. After considering various scenarios, including holding students in another area until construction is complete, the suggestion to delay the opening till next year was brought to the school board last Wednesday, before the school board meeting.

According to the press release, students and staff slated to move into the new school will stay in their current school through next year while construction continues. The hiring process for teachers and staff has been temporarily suspended.