Gary Waters

Construction on the new East Ridge Elementary School could begin within the week after the Hamilton County school board unanimously approved a construction bid at a called meeting Tuesday.

"I'd like to see ground broken in a week," said Hamilton County Board of Education Chairman Kenny Smith, who represents the district that includes East Ridge.

The winning bid from EMJ Corp. came in at $14.8 million, about $1.2 million lower than officials originally estimated. The Hamilton County Commission is expected to approve the bid Thursday.

The school, to be built behind the current East Ridge Elementary on John Ross Road, will house students from East Ridge and McBrien elementaries. It's scheduled to be finished by August 2010, which Schools Superintendent Jim Scales called a "very, very, very aggressive" schedule.

If it looks like the school won't be completed on time, Dr. Scales said officials would have to "make the call" early in the year for East Ridge students to remain at their current schools for 2010.

Mr. Smith, an electrician, said he believes the school will be finished ahead of schedule.

"There no doubt in my mind that it will be ready," he said. "EMJ has met deadlines like this before."

Gary Waters, the school system's assistant superintendent for auxiliary services, said the new East Ridge Elementary will cost about $23 per square foot less than the new Soddy or Orchard Knob elementary schools, the district's most recent elementaries. He credited the drop in price to increased competition in the construction industry.

"It's a competitive bid market out there right now," he said.

Mr. Waters agreed that EMJ should be able to finish the job on time. But it will require the contractors and workers, many of whom are local, to work more than 40 hours a week, he said.