The Carroll ISD board of trustees approved a staff request for additional classrooms at Johnson Elementary and Old Union Elementary schools at their meeting April 16.

CISD Bond Program Manager John Haugen explained that in May 2017, voters approved a bond program to include work at these two elementary schools to address capacity issues and lifecycle needs. Staff had originally budgeted six additional classrooms at Johnson Elementary and eight at Old Union Elementary, but staff said those numbers need to increase.

"It was one of the primary agendas behind this bond issue, was the capacity at some of these elementary schools," Haugen said.

He explained that staff has determined that the capacity needs at these two campuses are requiring more classrooms than were anticipated based on the capital needs committee's recommendation.

Haugen recommended adjusting the classrooms at Johnson Elementary School from six additional classrooms to 11 additional classrooms and Old Union Elementary School from eight additional classrooms to 10 additional classrooms.

The projects are budgeted in the 2017 bond program. Haugen said the board will be provided additional details of budget information as the projects move forward through the design phases and at the time of the bidding of the projects.

The agenda meeting packet said the project team believes the additional classrooms will increase the project costs around 5 to 10 percent of the budgeted amounts, and that the district will see savings in other parts of the bond program that will allow for these increases.

"The public passed a $208 million bond issue for the school district to execute the scope," Haugen said. "Whatever it costs out of that money to accomplish those scopes is all fluid in there to make sure we accomplish said scopes."