Facilities plans get estimates
In front of a crowd of 58 people, Alley Poyner Maccietto architect Daric O’Neal laid out multiple possibilities for district renovations at the final community meeting Wednesday at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds.
O’Neal, who once again served as the moderator, said the plans were high-level project views, and did not get into the details of where a sink goes, or counted an exact number of fixtures based on building occupants.
“We’re trying to account for space, the wants of the focus group, and use this information to develop priorities. We’ve been able to establish critical needs of the buildings, and get an estimate on what those particular costs will be,” O’Neal said.
Webster Elementary
Going through the individual buildings, Webster Elementary required $650,000 to $800,000 worth of work to address critical needs, with an estimate of $800,000 to $1 million for option repairs. O’Neal said there was a $150,000 estimate to tear the building down.
Inman Primary
Inman Primary has critical needs work in the range of $200,000 to $300,000, with $1 million to $1.5 million in optional repairs. O’Neal said one of the scenarios they examined was adding 4th and 5th grade students. Work required would include additions to the lunchroom, an auditorium addition, and classroom additions. The estimate for that work on Inman alone was at $4 million to $7 million.
“I know that’s a huge range, and you’re thinking I sound like a weatherman. However, we’re in a conceptual design phase, so these numbers account for all of the wants that the focus groups are considering, but also what we can bring the number down to if we strip the work down to needs,” explained O’Neal.
Washington Intermediate
For Washington Intermediate, critical repairs are required in the range of $1.2 million to $1.5 million if the building remains in use. Optional repairs at the school are in the range of $800,000 to $1 million.
There were numerous options for the Washington building moving forward. One was the Red Oak Academic Resource Center, which would move the administrative offices from the Industrial Technology building at the High School to Washington and move the students to another location. That would also open space for an alternative school, facilities, maintenance, transportation, and IT offices.
Costs for those renovations totaled roughly $1.4 million. O’Neal also discussed the option of a heated structure that could be used for repairing and maintenance of school buses. Cost of that building was estimated at $300,000, and would be located on land adjoining Washington.
Middle School
Moving to the middle school, O’Neal advised the critical repairs to keep the building running as-is totaled $3.5 million to $4 million.
“When I talk about critical repairs, it’s important to note these are not anything that address 21st century learning or improving the learning environment. It’s the stuff above the ceiling and behind the walls that is worn out, but is needed to keep the building operational,” O’Neal advised.
Optional repairs totaled $2.8 million to $3.5 million, making the building a 4th through 8th grade facility. Cost for the renovations were at $15 million to $22 million. The other option would be to eliminate classrooms but keep the gym in operation.
‘We’d put an addition to the gym to provide a practice gym space, and renovate the classrooms that are art and shop into locker rooms on the main floor, as well as restrooms, a concession stand, and a coaches facility. The other part of the building would be turned into parking,” O’Neal said.
Cost of that part of the project would come to $5 million.
High School
The last building discussed was the high school facility. Critical repairs on the building were estimated at $5 million to $6.8 million, with optional repairs between $4.9 million to $6 million.
Another option for the building would be to turn the building into a 6th through 12th grade facility. Cost for those renovations would total $20 million to $40 million.
Options for the district moving forward:
Implementation Scenario Option One:
Webster: Retire
Inman: Critical needs repairs only.
Washington: Critical needs repairs only.
Middle School: Critical needs repairs only.
High School: Critical needs repairs only.
Bancroft: No repairs
Total estimated cost: $13 million.
Summary: This option retires Webster, and maintains the remaining four educational buildings. It addresses critical repairs only. In addition, Bancroft remains in use as a facilities and transportation office.
Implementation Scenario Option Two:
Webster: Retire
Inman: Critical needs repairs only.
Washington: Critical needs repairs only.
Middle School: Retire.
High School: Major renovations and addition.
Bancroft: No repairs.
Total estimated cost: $23 million to $48 million.
Summary: Retires Webster and the middle school. Maintains the remaining three educational buildings. Addresses critical repairs only at Washington and Inman. High School undergoes major renovations to make it a 6th through 12th campus. District offices remain at high school. The gym at the middle school is renovated for practice and competition use. In addition, Bancroft remains in use as a facilities and transportation office.
Implementation Scenario Option Three:
Webster: Retire
Inman: Critical repairs and addition.
Washington: Critical needs repairs only.
Middle School: Retire.
High School: Major renovation and addition.
Bancroft: Retire.
Total estimated cost: $27 million to $55.32 million.
Summary: Bancroft, Webster, and the middle school are retired. Inman and the high school kept in operation. Washington would become the district’s ROAR Center and administrative offices, facilities, and transportation. The high school undergoes major renovations and an addition to make it a 6th through 12th campus. The gym at the middle school is renovated for practice and competition use.
Implementation Scenario Option Four:
Webster: Retire
Inman: Critical repairs and addition.
Washington: Retire.
Middle School: Retire.
High School: Major renovation and addition.
Bancroft: Retire.
Total estimated cost: $26 million to $52.32 million.
Summary: Bancroft, Webster, Washington and middle school retired. Inman and high school kept in operation. The high school undergoes major renovations and an addition to make it a 6th through 12th campus. The gym at the middle school is renovated for practice and competition use. District offices remain at the high school campus. A new transportation/facilities building is built at the high school or Inman campus.
Implementation Scenario Option Five:
Webster: Retire
Inman: Critical needs repairs only.
Washington: Retire.
Middle School: Major renovation and addition.
High School: Major renovation and addition.
Bancroft: Retire.
Total estimated cost: $30 million to $47.96 million.
Summary: Bancroft, Webster and Washington are retired. Inman, the middle school, and the high school remain in operation. The middle school undergoes a major renovation and addition to make it a 4th through 8th campus. The high school undergoes a major renovation and remains a 9th through 12th campus. District offices remain at the high school campus. A new transportation/facilities building is built at the high school or Inman campus.
After unveiling the five possible projects, O’Neal provided stickers to audience members to choose the option they most preferred and least preferred. O’Neal said none of the options were set in stone, and invited audience members to give their thoughts on projects and that other options could be made by combining elements of each option into alternatives.
“If there’s a lot of feedback to do one particular piece, but not another, we can certainly add those back in,” O’Neal said.
Roger Vial, who was in the audience, asked if the costs to renovate the middle school would be cheaper if they did not add 4th and 5th grades to the facility. O’Neal said the costs would be greatly reduced.
“To keep the building as is, the critical repairs would be $4.3 million. Optional repairs are $2.8 million to $3.5 million, so the total is around $8 million, but that doesn’t address the educational environment, just the infrastructure needs. Also, the building has a boiler system. There are life safety issues and accessibility issues that would need to be addressed that aren’t included in the optional repairs,” O’Neal said.
Melanie Sifford asked if some of the buildings were closed, how much the savings on utilities and upkeep would save the district. While he didn’t know the exact numbers, O’Neal said there would be a noticeable cost savings for the district.
O’Neal said he welcomed further questions and comments from Red Oak residents. You can call O’Neal at 712-310-8570, or 623-6888. Or email him at doneal@alleypoyner.com.