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BoE jump-starts school construction plans

By J. FRANK LYNCH
jflynch@thecitizennews.com

The Fayette County Board of Education is wasting no time moving forward with plans to construct a new middle school and make improvements to other schools, after voters approved $65 million in funding Nov. 2.

At the Nov. 15 meeting, board members certified the results of the bond referendum, which passed by nearly a two-thirds margin.

Klaus Darnell, the school system’s construction supervisor, gave an update on the top priorities included in the new five-year building plan, broken down into two stages.

Phase I will cost $35 million and include a new middle school in the central part of the county, long planned for a graded site on Lester Road next to Cleveland Elementary.

A rough schematic of the school showing the desired number of classrooms has already been sent to the Department of Education in order to secure state funding, which won’t be available until fall 2005 at the earliest, Darnell said.

Ground will be broken on the new school in late spring or early summer, with an August 2007 completion date planned.

Over the next couple of months, a committee of teachers and administrators from other middle schools in the county will come up with detailed plans for the school, using Whitewater and Flat Rock as starting points.

A few years ago, the school system adopted a prototype design for all new elementary schools (Minter, Crabapple, Peeples) and high schools (Whitewater). But this will be its first time that plans for the “ideal” middle school will be developed.

Board member Lee Wright asked that some type of performance space be included, since initially the new school won’t be paired with a high school that has an auditorium, like the other middle schools.

Board Chair Terri Smith agreed, pointing out that string orchestra programs have been added to the middle schools since the last one was built.

Facilities Director Mike Satterfield said the public will likely never see the one design element that’s certain to be included in the new school.

Utility hallways, narrow passageways that run between classrooms, were built into Whitewater High and several elementary schools, including Crabapple, Satterfield said. They contain the air systems, plumbing, electrical wiring and computer cables that would otherwise be installed in the ceilings or walls.

Maintenance workers can access the utility corridors anytime during the school day without disrupting class time, Satterfield said, which has proven invaluable.

Plans are also moving quickly on a 12-classroom addition to Rising Starr Middle School, which is the district’s most overcrowded school. Darnell said he had already met with the architects for the project and then next step would be to meet with the principal to finalize the plans.

Ground will be broken on Rising Starr as soon as school is out in May, with a completion date in fall 2006, Darnell said.

A host of improvements and upgrades to 10 other schools, ranging from paint jobs to new air conditioning systems to replacing chalkboards with dry marker boards, is also included in Phase I, but most don’t qualify for state funding.

That’s actually a plus, said Darnell, because the work can begin as soon as the revenue from the bond sale comes in, shortly after the first of the year, and be completed over summer.

“We’ll need to sit down and go over what plan to do first,” said Darnell.