Gumbs gives updates on school, library and sports facility projects

Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Minister Melissa Gumbs said the construction contract for Charles Leopold Bell School has been awarded and is moving toward signing. Gumbs said she hopes that Charles Leopold Bell School, Sister Marie Laurence Primary School and the St. Maarten Library will be completed during 2027 and fully operational by early 2028.

Gumbs said steel is being installed at Sister Marie Laurence Primary School in Middle Region. At the library project, site stakeout work and preparations for foundation work are under way, she said. Inventory preparation and procurement planning have also begun for furniture, equipment and interior finishes for the library and Charles Leopold Bell School.

Gumbs said the Catholic School Board, the competent authority for Sister Marie Laurence Primary School, agreed to seek separate funding for its furniture and finishes after discussions with the National Recovery Program Bureau, NRPB.

The minister also said the final contract for school gyms and public sports facilities under Emergency Recovery Project 1 has been signed. The works include the L.B. Scott Sports Auditorium, John Lamine Center, Philipsburg Cultural Center, José Lake Ballpark, and facilities at Sundial School, Milton Peters College and Prince Willem-Alexander School, according to Gumbs.