The projects consist of complete interior refreshes at Town Center Elementary, Denton Creek Elementary and Coppell Middle School North and were outlined in the $321 million bond approved in 2023, Bond Project Manager Sid Grant said. The district has bond projects planned through 2027.
Trustees approved maximum prices for the projects totaling over $11 million in a 6-0 vote at the Feb. 24 board meeting. Trustee Manish Sethi was absent from the meeting. The projects are set to begin this summer.
What to know
When conversations of school closures sparked last summer, the board approved a postponement of elementary bond projects, Grant said. Now that discussions are complete, district staff will resume these projects. The board approved the measure Nov. 18.
The district awarded the contracts to Core Construction and both Town Center Elementary and Denton Creek will receive updates, including:
- New door hardware and locks for all classrooms and exterior doors
- Weatherproofed building exteriors
- Interior improvements, such as new flooring, wall coverings and LED lighting
- A fire alarm system replacement
- Public address and clock system replacements
- A new art room kiln
The maximum price for the Town Center project is around $3.5 million and Denton Creek’s is around $3.7 million, Grant said. The Denton Creek refresh will also replace the kitchen cooler and freezer appliances resulting in a slightly higher construction cost.
Both projects have built in contingency funds of $356,205 and $491,116, respectively. These funds will only be used if necessary and any unused funds will not be paid by the district, Grant said.
Also of note
With the school closure and consolidation of school programs into Denton Creek Elementary, the campus is set to receive additional staff and students in fall 2025. This prompted staff to begin renovations planned for the school in summer 2025 rather than 2026, Grant said. The hope is that the decision will prevent staff moving to the campus from consolidations from moving again due to construction projects.
In addition to the campus refreshes, trustees also approved over $2.3 million for furniture replacements at Town Center, Denton Creek and Valley Ranch elementary schools. This will include replacing furniture in classrooms, libraries, offices and cafeterias in all the campuses except for Valley Ranch Elementary, which received new library and office furniture in December, Grant said.
Zooming in
Coppell Middle School is set to receive the same refresh work as the elementary campuses as well as a reconfiguration of the band area hallway, Grant said. However, due to the size of the building and the band hall work, the district opted to complete the project in two phases. The first phase will begin this summer and the second phase will begin in summer 2026, Grant said.
The first phase will consist of replacing the wall laminate, a composite material applied to interior walls with higher durability than paint, throughout the building. Trustees approved around $1.8 million for the first phase with a built in contingency of $198,109, according to district documents. The remaining work will be completed in second phase.
Going forward
Some design details such as colors and materials are still being finalized, but will not impact the approved maximum price, Grant said. These design details will be shared during the March board meeting.
Officials anticipate completing the refresh work at all three campuses before the start of the 2025-26 school year, he said. The furniture replacements are expected to complete before staff returns from summer break this August.
