Cost of middle school in Maryland raises eyebrows

From The Salisbury Daily Times: Budgeted at roughly $75 million, the new Bennett Middle School in Salisbury, Md., is among the most expensive middle schools being built in the state. The price tag has climbed above those of many middle schools, both in total cost and metrics such as cost per square foot. Wicomico County School Superintendent John Fredericksen says the perception that the 161,300-square-foot building is designed like the Taj Mahal is false; he maintains that the cost of the building is in line with other schools. What has bumped up the budget are costs not shared by other school construction projects, he says. Among them: buying new land, demolishing an old building, upgrading a sewer connection and making traffic and roadway improvements.