FARMINGTON – Two SAD 9 school construction projects face delays due to a decision by the state’s Board of Education aimed at saving money for programming costs over the next two years.

The department of education is delaying, by six months to a year, the date local school systems will issue bonds for 12 major school construction projects in 11 school districts around the state.

Construction bonds are normally issued about half way through the construction of a project.

The bond date for Farmington’s new elementary school has been moved from the spring of 2010 to the fall of 2010 while the bond issue date for a renovation and addition at Mt. Blue High School has been moved a year from the spring of 2010 to the spring of 2011.

The move could delay the opening date for some schools but all the projects will eventually be completed, state officials have said.

“The six month delay doesn’t pose a tremendous impact on the Mallett School,” SAD 9 Superintendent Michael Cormier said, “but the Mt. Blue High School project will be delayed a year.”

The delay may actually give the school system the chance to do a better job planning the high school project, Cormier said.

The school district was already anticipating the need to ask for a waiver extending the deadline for a concept plan for the high school project. The plan was expected to be presented in December.

“It’s a gift of time…they didn’t say they would cancel the projects,” Cormier said. “We’ll make it work.”

The Mt. Blue project includes a complete renovation and expansion at the high school and vocational center. The project will also begin to blend vocational and high school programming, erasing the appearance of two school entities, he said.

A complete electrical update with the latest in efficiency and green technologies to reduce dependence on oil is planned.

The addition removes all portable classrooms and a renovation of playing fields including the addition of tennis courts is also planned, he said.

“By our terminology, this will be a learning campus not just a place to get a high school diploma,” Cormier said. With planned opportunities for the local community college and a place to grow local businesses, the state indicated its support for the plans before the impact of the state funding crunch, he said.

“It’s an incredible opportunity for the school and community … even if it’s delayed a year,” he said.

While dates are not set in stone the site approval for the high school will probably happen in January instead of November, followed by concept approval in March and a referendum vote on the project in April, Cormier said.

With the Mallett School site and design already approved by voters, a tentative referendum on the project set for November will probably be moved to January, he said. The move may delay the opening of the new school.

“But, the project is still going on,” he said. “We understand the difficulty the state is facing and will just have to adjust time.”

About $9 million of bond payments from the 2010-2011 state budget will move to the 2011-2012 budget. The move frees up almost $5 million of state aid for general education programming and saves money in local districts statewide, according to a press release issued by the state Monday.