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School plans $1.1M for parking, restroom work
by Gregory R. Norfleet · News · April 23, 2015
About $1.1 million should cover two major summer projects, and the Board of Education heard summer might be just long enough to get them done.
The West Branch Community School District plans to add 47 more parking spots to the east end of the high school parking lot and to renovate at least half of the restrooms at Hoover Elementary, including the locker rooms. The high school work also includes flattening out the grassy area east of the parking lot for a future softball field — replacing the current field which lies in the path of a new parking lot entrance.
More restroom work depends on the bids that come in, board members decided at the April 13 meeting. Bids went out April 16 and are due back by May 11.
The $1.1 million would come from two school funds: the Physical Plant Equipment Levy (PPEL) and Statewide School Infrastructure Sales and Service Tax (SSAVE).
An estimate of the work, put together by Struxture Architects, shows the high school work running about $550,000. That includes $285,000 for the parking lot and $140,000 for grading the future softball field. The estimate also includes $83,000 for resurfacing the old section of the east parking lot. The resurfacing and grading work could be cut out of the project if bids come in too high, Struxture’s Craig Schwerdtfeger said. There’s also architectural fees and contingency funding worked into the price.
At the elementary school, Struxture estimates $210,000 for the first-floor hallway restrooms, three kindergarten restrooms and two preschool restrooms. If bids are low, the school could add the gymnasium locker rooms for $250,000 more. Tack on architectural fees and contingency funding, and the total restroom work adds up to $545,000.
The school board agreed they would like to do all of the work in the north wing/downstairs this summer. The cost estimate also includes restroom upgrades in the south wing/upstairs for about $420,000, but Schwerdtfeger said it did not look like that part could also get done before school started again Aug. 24.
School Board President Kathy Knoop said a recent tour of the restrooms and locker rooms convinced her the work needs to be done, though Superintendent Kevin Hatfield noted that the restroom still “meets code.”
Schwerdtfeger noted some of the classroom restrooms are so small that they are not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, yet they can “stay that way” if the school only refurbishes them, not if it renovates them.
“After 25 to 30 years, it’s probably time to do something,” board member Mike Owen quipped.
HBK Engineering’s Brian Boelk, who helped Struxture Architects work out numbers for the high school projects, said adding so many parking spots to the east end of the easternmost parking lot requires cutting into the adjacent hill. That extra dirt would help level out the future softball field.
These high school projects are meant to help the school district prepare for building an addition at the high school that can house middle school pupils.
Hatfield noted that even if the $23 million addition does not come to pass, the additional parking will help handle big crowds for things like track, softball and baseball.
Boelk showed the school board a birds-eye view of the parking lot, empty field and baseball field with graphics superimposed to show where the future softball field would go. That same picture showed a new baseball field in roughly the same place as it is now, only with the outfield and infield flipped, putting it back-to-back with the future softball field.
Board member Mike Colbert asked about leaving the baseball field in its current position, since it is not in the way of future construction plans. Hatfield said the idea is to build one concession stand between the two fields — right now there are two.
Hatfield noted that he will work with contractors to make sure the summer work does not block access to the baseball field.
The superintendent said the PPEL and SSAVE funds should have about $500,000 left after paying for these projects, and should be back up to about $800,000 by this time next year.
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