Salinas’ newest high school will open despite falling behind schedule on construction.

On April 10, Salinas Union High School District opened up the doors of its newest school on Rogge Road to a select number of community members and media. An eager new freshman class, wearing orange and black shirts, welcomed the crowd to their future campus, Rancho San Juan High School. It was a sneak peek into a project that was a long time coming.

But a month after the preview, on May 14, SUHSD trustees voted on two resolutions confirming that the school is not yet 100-percent complete. One resolution was to file for completion, despite the incomplete work. The second was a contract for emergency work. The trustees unanimously approved both measures.

The project contractor, Dilbeck & Sons, and SUHSD confirm they will be working together to complete the remainder of the work.

The project load shouldn’t cause any more significant delays according to Aaron Dilbeck, the senior project manager. “We have been substantially complete since mid-January,” Dilbeck writes by text message. He says the bulk of the finishing details that remain include fixes to things like leaky faucets and self-closing gates, as well as completing close-out documents. One of the biggest delays the project has faced was with streetlights which, according to Dilbeck, were not designed properly and do not currently meet county standards.

Still, when the board trustees voted to file for completion they effectively signed on to keep the academic schedule on track. Despite delays, the district expects the school will be open on June 3 in time for summer school.