The cost of a capital improvement plan that will address rising enrollment at the high school/middle school campus is now in. And, if every potential project is included, the price tag will read $27 million. It is now up to the Board to determine the scope of the project. Any bond would be subject to voter approval.

The cost of a capital improvement plan that will address rising enrollment at the high school/middle school campus is now in. And, if every potential project is included, the price tag will read $27 million. It is now up to the Board to determine the scope of the project. Any bond would be subject to voter approval.

 

The main component of the design, presented by KSQ Architects and Triton Construction, is a $15.6 million classroom addition. Located adjacent to the portables on the Milton Road side of the campus, the proposed addition is a two-story science building, equipped with 12 labs and six prep rooms. The stand alone would attach to the school through a semi-transparent corridor, replace the existing science classrooms, and allow space to be recaptured.

Preliminary sketches of the north face of the addition take cues from what exists, and introduce a Gothic arch concept with a portal entrance in front. KSQ also tinkered with the idea of a space that punches out in the façade, providing a science lab feel for those looking in.

 

The initial presentation also included separate costs for interior reconstruction on the existing science rooms and bathrooms ($2.7 million), as well as for guidance and nurses’ offices, and art and locker rooms ($5.5 million). Another facet of the project is the installation of a regulation-size natural grass athletic field behind the school, which would necessitate demolishing the old field house and constructing a new one. The total cost estimate is $3.4 million.

“The numbers are big and we have to absorb them,” said Board member Josh Nathan. “I’d like to see from the administration what the debt service impact will be on the budget projected out. I want all options included, but each of the pieces separately so we can see at what point we have to cry ‘Uncle’ if we’re not already crying.”

 

He continued, “We’ve spent a lot of time since 2007 examining ways to maximize space on the campus. The administration, faculty, and staff have done everything they can to act on nearly every single thing Dr. Seversky recommended, but the space is maxed out. The kids are here and they are coming.”

 

The Board will hold a work session on the subject September 7, and it will be on the agenda for regular meetings on the 13th and 27th. The plan is to have the project in order by the October 11 meeting, in time for a December bond vote.

 

By Jim Byrne