By Amelia Tan

ST HILDA'S Secondary School in Tampines held a groundbreaking ceremony yesterday for a $35.7 million construction project that will include Singapore's first rooftop hockey pitch.

The project, scheduled for completion in mid-2011, would give the school a three-storey student centre with two indoor sports halls, a multi-purpose hall, a covered parade square and a rooftop hockey pitch.

The school - which has 1,400 students - also plans to refurbish classrooms, counselling rooms and the library, while adding a jogging track and a garden.

The project will be funded by the Government's Programme for Rebuilding and Improving Existing Schools (Prime), which was introduced in 1999 to redevelop schools in phases.

But rising construction costs have put a damper on the scheme. In July, the Government announced that it would defer $1.7 billion in public sector projects, including six schools earmarked for Prime, amid sky-high building costs.

A Ministry of Education spokesman said St Hilda's Secondary was given the go-ahead as the project was already in the tender stage when the decision was made to shelve the other projects.

As St Hilda's Secondary is a government-aided school, it needs to raise at least 5 per cent of the estimated $35.7 million price tag for the upgrades. The State will foot the rest.

The school is aiming to raise $2.3 million in total, a sum that will also pay for items like the jogging track and a heritage room, which are not covered by the Government. It has raised $300,000 and plans a series of fund-raising events next year, such as a gala dinner and concerts.

But principal Ong Kim Soon said the school faces an uphill battle amid the economic downturn. 'We hope that people will make some sacrifices for a good cause,' he said.

Estimated construction costs for the entire project grew from $19 million last year, when planning began, to the current $35.7 million. Part of that increase was for the addition of other facilities, including the rooftop pitch.

Mr Ong said yesterday that the school decided to go ahead with the project because officials and alumni felt the 20-year-old campus needed a facelift. The last major renovation was in 1999 when an additional block of classrooms was built.

As the school does not have an indoor sports hall, students have to make do with a football field for games or travel to other schools.

Students said they cannot wait for the project to be completed.

Volleyball player Darren Lim, 15, said: 'We won't need to stop our training whenever it rains because we will have an indoor hall. By training more, I am sure our standard will improve.'

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Dec 27, 2008.