The Clayton County Board of Education on Monday selected Meja Construction to build the south metro Atlanta district’s new Forest Park Middle School, though some members had reservations.
Five members of the board approved hiring the Peachtree City contractor to construct the $92.2 million building, which will replace the current school with a new three-floor building. The project, expected to accommodate 1,200 students over more than 228,000 square feet, will be funded with $86.6 million in SPLOST revenue and $5.5 million from the Georgia Department of Education.
Three board members, however, abstained from voting because of concerns over Meja’s past performance and a desire for the school district to broaden the list of available contractors for building construction.
Board member Mark Christmas accused Meja of failing to complete items on past punch lists, leaving the task to the school system to finish at a later date.
“I think we need to look at how Meja’s do their work because our maintenance crew shouldn’t have to go behind them and do their work,” he said.
Board chairwoman Jessie Goree said she was abstaining because of a “lack of information,” though she did not explain what details were deficient.
Board member Jasmine Bowles said the school system needs a bigger pool of contractors from which to choose.
“I just want to see us to diversify our contractors for construction,” she said.
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