The board of trustees approved the recommendation for Glenn Engineering—which has an office in Irving—for all of the bond projects requiring the services of a civil or structural engineer. Documents state the district has used Glenn Engineering for projects for more than 30 years.
The fees will be 4% of the engineered portion of the actual construction cost, according to documents. The $321 million bond includes a mix of new construction and renovations.
The details
Projects include building foundation repairs as well as the replacement of artificial turf and running tracks. There will be eight total projects scheduled for the 2023-24 school year.
- Valley Ranch Elementary School renovation/addition
- Coppell High School fine art building construction and tennis center expansion
- Playground replacement for eight campuses
- Mockingbird Elementary remodel
- Wilson Elementary remodel
- Coppell Middle School East renovations
- Coppell Middle School West renovations
- Pinkerton Elementary remodel
- Coppell Middle School North renovations
CISD Chief Operations Officer Chris Trotter gave the board of trustees an updated timeline for the projects. He said the district is in the planning and cost estimation portion with Frisco-based Core Construction, with plans to give the board bid options in March. Trotter expects work on all the projects in the first phase of the bond to be finished by 2025.
Work on Valley Ranch Elementary could start in summer 2024 and would continue through to fall 2025, if approved. That will mean using between six to eight portable buildings starting next school year, with teachers rotating every six to eight weeks, Trotter said. He added the portable buildings will be fenced in and monitored.
A closer look
The tennis center and fine arts building will be constructed along the same timeline due to proximity, Trotter said, and those bids could be before the March timeline.
The fine arts building will include dressing rooms for the drill team, cheerleaders and band. The gymnasium area that will be constructed will also double as a tornado shelter space, Trotter said.
The tennis center will see a renovation with a new a ticket booth at the entrance, extra storage, and team rooms for boys and girls teams with 120 total lockers.
The inspiration
When it came to new playgrounds, Trotter said he went to the experts—meeting with fourth graders at Richard J. Lee Elementary.
“They gave us a lot of great ideas,” Trotter said.
The district will move away from a wood chip base on playgrounds and will go with astroturf going forward, which will have a life span of nine to 12 years, Trotter said.
The turf is also Americans with Disabilities Act compliant, and part of the new playground equipment include be wheelchair-accessible swings for students.
