Dedication Ceremony Scheduled for New McDonald Elementary

With a snip of scissors, Centennial's district-wide construction and consolidation process will come to a close.

The public has been invited to the grand opening dedication ceremony of the brand new McDonald Elementary on Monday, Sept. 30. Tours will begin at 6:30 p.m., with the dedication at 7 p.m.

McDonald Elementary is the last of the new buildings that were constructed in Centennial School District as part of a multi-million dollar project. The new Davis Elementary opened in the fall of 2012, and a renovated and expanded Willow Dale opened in the fall of 2011. Construction cost approximately $30 million per school.

The construction and expansion to bigger elementary schools allowed the district to sell three other properties to a land developer last year. County Builders purchased Leary, Longstreth and Stackpole elementary schools for a combined cost of $1.2 million.

Demolition has been started on Leary and Stackpole, both buildings torn down, but plenty of rubble and concrete still on site. Longstreth still remains in tact, but the building has been fenced off.

Site work on the demolished McDonald Elementary is closer to the finish line, and not a moment too soon for Centennial School District officials and the surrounding neighborhoods.

Residents in the community have taken countless complaints to the district, township and the state about the behavior of the contractor. Neighbors said that workers from Vollers Excavating & Construction did not properly mitigate dust and debris during the demolition of the older McDonald buildings, causing environmental encroachments on nearby residences.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection fined the contractor more than $17,000 in the beginning of the summer after one resident filed a complaint over a layer of mud that accumulated in his swimming pool.

Centennial Superintendent Dr. Joyce Mundy also expressed frustration with Vollers and said the district will be seeking financial ramifications from the company.