SHILOH – Local and state officials toured the North Dorchester high and middle school campus on Oct. 19, where they learned about the recently completed Phase I of the $50 million project.

The main feature of the tour, as anyone driving past the site might agree, is the steel frame of the new North Dorchester High School. With girders in place, the visitors could see the central, taller portion that will house the gym, and other areas to be locker rooms, the cafeteria and classes.

North Dorchester Middle School was replaced six years ago, with a matching facility built as Mace’s Lane Middle School. Work now underway at the Shiloh campus will provide features for both schools, which are located side by side.

These include sports fields, parking and infrastructure.

Sports fields feature durable and resilient Bermuda grass

Parking will be centrally located

250 geothermal wells are under the main field, to be used for heating and cooling

Two new drinking-water wells have been dug

A new water-storage facility has been built, to serve students and NDMS’ potential use as an emergency shelter for the area

Chris Hauge, the county’s leading engineer, said work at the campus is being planned and completed in such a way as to allow students’ activities to continue on-site throughout the process.

“Our objective is for the 2019-2020 school year, this building will be occupied for instruction,” Mr. Hauge.

Efforts are being made to make sure much of the job goes to regional companies. “That’s something we track every two weeks,” Mr. Hauge said. “Local money getting spent locally.”

Looking back over the previous work at ND Middle School, the current Phase I upgrades and beyond, Mr. Hauge said, “We’re really ending up in a pretty good place, it just took us a little while to get here.”

To learn more about Dorchester County Public Schools, visit dcps.k12.md.us.