Diggs Construction completes SMSA project in Hartford

Officials from Sport & Medical Sciences Academy (SMSA) and the City of Hartford attended the ribbon cutting ceremony for SMSA recently. The 158,000 s/f building became home to 725 students when it officially opened on August 25th for the 2008-2009 school year. Designed by DuBose Associates Architects, the $71 million project is considered a major success. "With the help of the construction manager and architect, SMSA is a landmark project completed under budget while exceeding most of its program goals," said Joe DeSanti of Diggs Construction, program director of the school construction program. The project will likely be $2-3 million under budget. Forty-three percent of the workforce were women and minorities and 30% of the workforce were Hartford residents. The theme of this magnet school is to interest students in pursuing higher education to study all fields related to sports: medicine, physiology, psychology, broadcasting, management, research, nutrition and fitness. The school is part of the city's improvement plan to raise the bar academically for all 24,000 students.