LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Unified School District Board of Trustees voted Thursday night to place a $17 million bond measure to modernize and upgrade school facilities on the November ballot.
The 4-0 vote – with Trustee Dennis Darling absent – came toward of the end of the nearly 70-minute regular meeting, and after presentations by Brian P. Whitmore of BCA Architects, who gave the board a report on a facilities assessment, and Greg Isom, the consultant assisting the district with the bond, who briefly went over points of the bond document.
The approval comes just in time to submit the necessary documents to the county. District Superintendent Erin Hagberg said all of the documents must be submitted by Friday afternoon.
The district last put a bond measure before voters in 2001. That $7.5 million measure funded projects including the Marge Alakszay Center multipurpose building, and repair and renovation of classrooms.
Whitmore – who Hagberg said was given a very short timeframe to complete the facilities assessment – looked at potential costs in line with the proposed bond.
He offered “very preliminary estimates” for the costs of the projects that are listed as priorities based on a phone survey to assess support for the bond that Isom's firm, Isom Advisors, conducted among 400 district voters from June 23 through July 1.
More than 65 percent of respondents were in favor of the bond Lakeport Unified is proposing, according to a report Isom gave the board last month.
The projects listed in the bond measure resolution the board passed Thursday night include access to technology; upgrades to existing classroom and school facilities or construction of new ones; a new library/media center for Terrace Middle School; renovation of the Westshore Pool; replacing aging temporary portables with permanent classrooms; construction of a food service dining area for high school students; upgrading playgrounds, fields, gym and weight room facilities; and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility upgrades.
Whitmore said today's 21st century educational environments are centered on students, and focus on collaboration, mobility and flexibility.
As an example of classroom upgrades the district may want to consider, Whitmore showed a Lakeport Unified classroom alongside a more modern demonstration classroom the firm has designed.
Rather than a room crowded with small individual desks, the newer classroom had tables and chairs on castors that can be easily moved, a smart board and interactive project.
“The idea with 21st century learning is that it's agile,” Whitmore said.
Whitmore said BCA suggested upgrading the district's classrooms in order for its schools to be more competitive and viable.
Other proposals included updating school libraries to be “learning commons” type spaces, which involves a move away from the traditional book stack configurations in order to give students more room for interacting with each other and using technology, he said.
Removal of portable buildings could give way to developing a central quad area and outdoor learning spaces, even gardens. Because of Lakeport's great weather, creating outdoor learning spaces “makes a lot of sense,” Whitmore said.
Whitmore said there also is the potential for a creative new use of the auto shop, since the district no longer has the funds for the program. Instead, the facility could be used for other career technical education programs.
As for the Westshore Pool, Whitmore said it would need to have an ADA-compliant path of travel from the parking lot and high school locker room, the equipment building and all of the equipment it contains would need to be replaced, and restroom and shower facilities compliant with the Field Act – which requires that school buildings be earthquake-resistant – would need to be constructed.
BCA is recommending taking “a very hard look” at whether or not the pool can be “rehabilitated” using the process required by the Department of the State Architect – the agency which oversees school facilities and which determined that it had not certified the pool – or if it needs to relocated and rebuilt.
Regarding the cost estimates for various projects – which Whitmore acknowledged during the meeting had not been vetted by contractors, but which he believed could actually be conservative – the biggest overall cost would be for upgrading the 75 classrooms across Lakeport Elementary, Terrace Middle School and Clear Lake High School, totaling more than $6.2 million.
The estimated costs to create ADA-compliant access and a new building at Westshore Pool could cost $1.5 million, which Whitmore told board members during the discussion could run much higher if structural upgrades are needed for the pool. As a result, BCA is suggesting a feasibility study on the pool.
Overall, the proposed projects are estimated to cost $13.7 million for construction, with another $3.4 million for soft costs, totaling $17.1 million. Of that, about $500,000 will be needed to pay the costs associated with the bond sales, Whitmore said.
Whitmore suggested the board prioritize the projects and identify how much they can pay for each.
He told the board that BCA will fine tune the 21st century learning concept to Lakeport Unified's culture and environment.
“By and large your facilities are in pretty good shape,” Whitmore said, noting the district has done a good job of caring for them.
Board President Phil Kirby said he appreciated the focus on the district's children. “That's what it boils down to, that's for sure.”
The full list of projects proposed under the bond is below.
- Improve student access to computers and modern technology.
- Repair or replace outdated heating, ventilation, air conditioning and lighting systems with building code compliant, energy efficient systems.
- Modernize, renovate, and/or construct classrooms, restrooms and school facilities.
- Improve/renovate/construct the Westshore Pool for school and community use.
- Modernize/renovate classrooms to meet 21st century educational standards.
- Make health and safety improvements.
- Construct a new library/media center at the Terrace Middle School.
- Replace temporary portables with permanent classrooms.
- Repair, replace and or upgrade roofs, walls, and floors.
- Construct a food service dining area for high school students.
- Upgrade/renovate playgrounds, play structures and P.E. fields and facilities for school and community use.
- Replace existing wiring systems to meet current electrical and accessibility codes and increased capacity.
- Federal- and state-mandated Occupational Safety & Health Administration safety upgrades including playground equipment replacement.
- All federal- and state-mandated Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility upgrades including site access, parking, staff and student restrooms, relocation of some existing electrical devices, drinking fountains, playground equipment, etc.
- Upgrade school site parking, roadways, utilities and grounds.
- Acquire school and related support facilities through the payment and prepayment of existing lease payments, including leases relating to outstanding certificates of participation.
- Abate and remove hazardous materials identified prior or during construction.
- Upgrade and expand telecommunications.
- Repair, replace and/or upgrade paved surfaces, turf, and other grounds to eliminate safety hazards and improve outside instructional areas.
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