DISTRICT AWARDS BUILDING CONTRACT.

Byline: Kathleen Sweeney Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - The Hart school board has approved a contract with Bernards Bros. Construction Management to oversee construction of the Hart district's new high school and junior high.

Construction on the two projects totaling $60 million is expected to begin this spring. Rio Norte Junior High is scheduled to open in 2003 after years of delays because of various environmental issues. Golden Valley High School should open the following year.

``We couldn't be more pleased to be involved in this process,'' said Terry Zinger, vice president of Bernards Bros. ``Our company roots run long and deep in the Santa Clarita Valley, having built many of the schools throughout the valley, and participating in this long-awaited expansion of the Hart district is very important to us.''

Building a school in this valley is important to the company, Zinger said. Bernards Bros. has built at least 15 of the schools throughout the valley, and about 60 percent of the company's employees have children who attend or will attend Santa Clarita schools.

Zinger said the company is reviewing the plans for Rio Norte in Valencia and will soon start the same process for the high school, proposed for Canyon Country. Once the plans are in place, it will send out bids for various construction work. The company prides itself on effective control for construction processes, which Zinger said isn't about ``rocket science'' but about hard work, attention to the basics and discipline.

Bernards Bros., a San Fernando company, is known around Southern California for its work on Legoland California, and portions of Disney's California Adventure and Magic Mountain.

The construction management company has also been involved in working with public services, such as 911 centers, and a science and technology center at the University of California, Los Angeles.