La Veta Facilities Taskforce January 5, 2018
Facilities Taskforce Convened In January 2017, the Board of Education convened a Facilities Taskforce to study our schools and the needs we have for our buildings now and in the future. The Committee initially included: o Board members: John Albright & Matt Dobbs o Accountability Committee Members: Eddie Smith & Jim Taylor o Administrators: Toni Brgoch,Business Manager; Gaye Davis, Grants, Projects, and Transportation Director; Bree Lessar, Supt.; Suzanne Pierce, Elementary Principal; Rick Sciacca, Director of Student Services; Mike Zanolini, Facilities Director John Albright was elected as the Taskforce s Chairman.
First Steps This committee: toured all of our facilities from top to bottom and reviewed facility assessment reports that have been filed with the Colorado Department of Education between 2008 2015. added representatives from the teaching staff, including Kim Eldredge, Amber Huff, and Rachel Rheuby. Booster Club representative Michelle Andreatta and the La Veta School Foundation President Annalee Hickey joined the group as well.
INITIAL LEARNING By late February 2017, the committee learned: The approximate cost to bring the current buildings up to code is $10 million If the district runs a bond, the most that can be raised is about $6.5 million, this is a legal limit, as schools cannot pass bonds for more than 20% of their district s assessed valuation ours is currently about $33 million If we bonded all the way to our tax threshold or bonding capacity this would cost taxpayers approximately $115 per year for each $100K of assessed household property (rates would be different for businesses and agricultural)
BEST Grant Application The district can apply for a BEST (Building Excellent Schools Today) grant for capital construction; the application is due February 23, 2018 The district s match is 33% of total project cost, so a $30 million project will require a match of $9.9 million, which the district cannot statutorily raise The district may need to apply for a statutory waiver of the required match, but to get one the BEST board will need to be highly supportive of the district s course of action The district has an assigned liaison to the CDE BEST capital construction program. That liasion assisted the district with the roofing project in 2010, the fire escape in the summer of 2015, and the 2016 grant for the new bleachers and the heating system in the Roger Brunelli Gym The BEST program requires a formal facilities master plan for large-dollar requests. The BEST program seems to favor 50 year solutions.
Visits to Other BEST-Built Districts Facilities taskforce members visited Antonito K-12 and Moffat K-12 in March to learn from those districts about their process for planning for their facilities, applying for the BEST grant, and building. Taskforce members added District Secretary Ms. Sue Smith to the taskforce after these visits, as recommended by school leaders at the host districts. Additionally, the committee began considering hiring outside expertise to assist with master planning. Four companies were contacted, three submitted bids and three were interviewed by the facilities taskforce. In mid-july, the taskforce recommended the hiring of Bennett, Wagner, Grody (BWG) Architects to lead the master planning process. BWG began assessing the facilities in August.
Community Engagement School Tours were offered on ten different occasions throughout the months of March November 2017. The La Veta Signature and the Huerfano World Journal ran press releases, news coverage, and advertisements throughout the spring, summer, and fall of 2017. The district opened an e-mail address at facilitiestaskforce@lvk12.org in February 2017. A facilities page located at www.lavetaschools.com provides information. Information was mass e-mailed to the school community providing updates to progress and invitations to community meetings. Taskforce Chairman Albright and Superintendent Lessar regularly published their phone numbers and invited questions and comments. They also made themselves available for Q & A at school. Open public meetings were held on three occasions. A staff meeting was held on December 6. The district opened a FaceBook page in October 2017.
Bennett, Wagner, Grody Master Planning Firm was hired because available funds from the district and grant sources are not keeping up with needs. It is estimated that it will take more than $10 million to fix current deficiencies in the buildings. The current effort is to identify a master plan for the district s future. Architectural design will happen later. Three public meetings were held, on Oct. 16, 30, and Dec. 6. A fourth is recommended on January 8, 2018, on the BOE s regular meeting night. The first meeting focused on the vision that the community holds for the schools and looked at the programming that the community desires to be sure its facilities can support the district s intended outcomes. The second meeting presented four options to those who attended and sought feedback on those options. The community wanted an option that incorporated the closing of Garland Street and its use as a buildable area. The third meeting attached cost estimates to the two options that were determined to be best by the facilities taskforce. A fourth meeting is scheduled on January 8 primarily to seek community input on the two options.
BWG Options BWG developed 5 options for the district: A1, A2, B, C, D. Four of the options were to re-model current facilities. Two of the options rely on closure of Garland Street, which the Town Board indicated on November 7, 2017 they will support by vacating the street through Town Ordinance. One option was for a new build on property owned by the district on the north side of La Veta, where the district s competitive football field is currently located. The facilities taskforce met with district staff on Wednesday, December 6. Following that meeting, the taskforce determined that it would choose between the two options considered best for meeting the varied needs of the district. The Greenfield Site was previously Option C and is a new build by the FB field. The Garland Street Site was Option D and is a comprehensive re-model that includes a partial demolition and re-build of the K-8 school. This option will require closure of Garland Street between Main & Birch.
Both options: Are built for growth to a student population of 350 which is 25 students per class Pk 12. Can include updates to the football field / track. Are designed for computers to be used in classrooms and common spaces rather than traditional computer labs. Include space for art and music practice and performance. Include science labs, vocational agriculture shop space, and teacher collaboration areas
COST COMPARISONS OF THE TWO OPTIONS Bennett, Wagner, Grody presented cost estimates prepared by construction company GE Johnson on December 6, 2017. During that meeting, BWG conveyed cost estimates of approximately $30 million for both options. GE Johnson addressed the need for an additional $5.5 million to bring the envelope and roofing of the RB Gym/JH Classrooms and the Sandstone Building up to a standard of energy efficiency comparable to new construction. In the re-model option, these buildings would be re-used and so increased energy efficiency is not required. As such, BWG did not include the cost of that increased energy efficiency in the comparison of the two options.
COST COMPARISONS OF THE TWO OPTIONS Greenfield Site Garland Street Site 73,297 91,592 73,297 44,380 Not Applicable 47,212 $ *31,774,328 $ *36,658,888 15 Months 21 Months New Pk-12 Building - 73,297 GBA New Addition for Pk-8-44,380 GBA Greenfield Site Selective Renovation of Existing Spaces: New Utilities and a Fire Loop JHS/Gym 91 new parking stalls High School VoAG Building Minor Site Work Temporary Classrooms would not be required Temporary Classrooms would not be required *COSTS DO NOT YET include track / football field updates, furniture, fixtures, and equipment (FFE), or project management. No Hazardous/Contaminated Material Removal Track and Field Improvements are not included No Hazardous/Contaminated Material Removal Track and Field Improvements are not included Escalation Costs are carried to Q1 of 2019 Escalation Costs are carried to Q1 of 2019 Option C Option D
CDE Input The district must work through the BEST Grant Program on a facilities solution. BEST is looking for 50-Year solutions. It is important to remember that if the district passes a bond to the district s maximum capability, it will not have access to additional funding for most of the period of a 20-year bond. District Grants, Projects, and Transportation Director Gaye Davis has conversed with a program manager at regarding the district s progress on master planning. CDE has all of the same information that we have and has been provided meeting minutes from the facilities taskforce and all work product from BWG. CDE also conducted facilities site assessments on the La Veta campus in 2007 and in 2016.
Major Feedback from the CDE Best Program to date: Concern has been expressed that the current re-model plan results in more square footage overall than the proposed new build (by 18,300 sq. ft.). The state wants to be sure that the district can afford proper maintenance of all facilities, regardless of location. The program may be open to the district retaining the RB Gym for its own use, if the master plan indicates how the district will maintain its use. It may be used for auxiliary programming: youth, community, etc. CDE shares the district s concerns about the status of current buildings if a new build is chosen. Concerns regarding energy efficiency: A re-model cannot achieve LEED certification. Additionally, CDE suggests that the district does not pursue LEED Gold certification on a new build, because of lack of capacity in the surrounding area. BEST will not entertain an application for use of alternative energy sources at this time. The recommendation is use of conventional energy sources supported with expertise and resources readily available in the existing community.
Bonding Agent Tax burdens on based on 2017 Assessed Valuation Homeowners Business owners Agricultural the district is currently working with residential property estimates
Town of La Veta Access / road Town agreed to make a two-lane road when provided an easement for water treatment San Isabel s substation has been updated and visibility and access are improved Utilities Water and sewer line / taps & impact fees Moving utilities At Garland Street, water can be moved & sewer would need to be encased Zoning In the annexation agreement developed in the early 2000s designated the Greenfield Site an R-1 Zoning, which is comparable to our current facility Garland Street Use The street can be closed, temporarily or permanently if the school remodels
CDOT Turning lane Collecting information about traffic impact of vehicles drop off and pick-up Passenger car equivalents will determine needs for access & access will determine cost Cost can be included in grant dollars Speed zones Because Hwy 12 is a State Hwy, CDOT governs speed & a School Zone may be established with reduced speeds Walking access from La Veta Downtown to the new School / vice versa Positive that railroad crossing w/ sidewalk is already in place on the west side of Hwy 12 Potential for Safe Routes to Schools Grant
OPTIONS FOR BUILDINGS Maintain RB Gym, Classrooms, Locker rooms, & Cafeteria Demolition Elementary School Maintenance Building Repurpose or Demolition VocAg Sale or Demolition Science Building Pre-school / Kinder Redevelopment 1911 Sandstone Building
Track, Football Field, & Roger Brunelli Gymnasium TRACK 6 lane track is doable under current conditions; 8 lane track will take a major overhaul that may be cost prohibitive with BEST grant money TRACK / FOOTBALL Seating capacity dictates toilets at the site restrooms can be included Parking will be only is designated areas ROGER BRUNELLI GYM District may be able to retain RB Gym for use as a secondary athletic facility and for use as community space
Next Steps Invitation to community to provide input into options schedule a board work session on Monday, January 8 at 6:00 p.m. Facilities taskforce to meet again on January 9 to prepare a final recommendation for the Board Board action anticpated on January 22, 2018 BEST Grant due on February 23, 2018 District Presentation to BEST Board in Mid-May BEST decisions by the end of May Bond issue filed in late August, if BEST application is successful
Pros Room to grow No disruption to students during build Single point-of-entry, controlled access Continued ownership of RB Gym Greenfield Site Populated from discussion at BOE meeting on 12-18-17 Cons
Pros Fewer entries, not more than 2 major points of entry Garland Street Site Populated from discussion at BOE meeting on 12-18-17 Cons Perceived lack of appropriate parking No room for expansion 2 year build-out with educational impact / no kitchen in Year 2
Additional Questions Maintenance costs for a new build vs. remodel?