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Read the press release here.

75 Morton School Opening Delayed By a Year, Superintendent Says

 The renderings show hallways in shades of yellow, pale greens and dark blues.
The renderings show hallways in shades of yellow, pale greens and dark blues.
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DNAinfo/Danielle Tcholakian

WEST VILLAGE — The opening of the long-awaited new middle school coming to Manhattan's largest school district will be delayed another year "due to unforeseen structural steel conditions," the Department of Education said Tuesday.

The school, M.S. 297, is currently under construction at 75 Morton St. and was expected to welcome its first class of 6th graders in September 2017, after a decade of organizing by local parents and elected officials.

It will now open for the 2018-2019 school year, the DOE said, as contractors discovered these steel elements "that could present significant safety concerns."

The DOE is proposing that the school "incubation" begin in 2017-2018 anyway by temporarily co-locating the school's first year of 6th graders at the Clinton School for Writers and Artists at 10 East 15th St., just west of Union Square.

That building is also brand new.

The principal overseeing M.S. 297 — long known as 75 Morton — praised the proposal in a statement.

“The [Clinton School] building has incredible amenities that will provide a supportive learning environment for M.S. 297 6th graders next school year," said recently-picked master principal Jacqui Getz. "We’re looking forward to moving into the new building for the 2018-19 school year, and are confident that the temporary space will meet the needs of students.”

The DOE co-location proposal will require approval by the Panel for Education Policy.

District 2 superintendent Bonnie Laboy met with Clinton School leadership on Monday afternoon and sent an email to the District 2 community about the change shortly after, the DOE said.