Alvin ISD officials conclude, review 2018 bond projects

Alvin ISD’s 2018 bond projects have officially concluded, district officials said at the board of trustees Oct. 8 meeting.

The overview

The 2018 bond was worth $480.5 million to assist in enrollment growth, according to district documents. It consisted of the following completed projects:

• E.C. Mason replacement campus
  • Construction began fall 2019, campus opened fall 2021
  • The campus replaced the original campus built in 1979
• Addition of Jackie Doucet Caffey Junior High
  • Construction began fall 2019, campus opened fall 2021
• Addition of Iowa Colony High School
  • Construction began summer 2019, campus opened fall 2022
• Addition of Delbra Orum Nichols-Wilma Fountain Mock Elementary School
  • Construction began winter 2021, campus opened fall 2023
• Addition of Iowa Colony Junior High
  • Construction began summer 2022, campus opened summer 2024
• Renovations for Harby Junior High
  • Construction began summer 2021, campus opened fall 2023
  • Renovations were used to expand and modernize the campus to fit student capacity
• Alvin Elementary replacement campus
  • Construction began summer 2021, campus opened summer 2024
  • The campus was replaced to modernize facilities to “enhance the student learning experience”
• Addition of Barbara Klinkovsky Bennett Elementary School
  • Construction began fall 2022, campus opened summer 2024

While the projects were completed on time, district officials said they encountered struggles from COVID-19, Hurricane Harvey and inflation.

COVID-19 was a challenge primarily during the construction period for E.C. Mason Elementary’s replacement campus, Harvey was a challenge primarily during the addition of Jackie Doucet Caffey Junior High and inflation began to be a challenge during the construction of Delbra Orum Nichols-Wilma Fountain Mock Elementary, Bill Van Wagner, AISD director of planning and construction services, said at the meeting.

The bond passed with about 68.5% of voter support, according to an Oct. 9 news release from the district.

Quote of note

“All projects and all of the goals with the 2018 bond project have been met, and not just met as outlined in the bond proposal, we’re even more pleased ... we did this on time and on schedule to complete all of these projects and under budget,” AISD Deputy Superintendent of Operations Rory Gesch said at the meeting.

Looking ahead

As the district’s 2018 bond has concluded, AISD has called for a $380.1 million bond election set to be on the Nov. 5 ballot.

Similar to the 2018 bond, this bond was called to address the district’s anticipated growth, officials said.

The bond election consists of the following potential projects:

• Two new elementary schools
• One new junior high school
• One replacement campus to replace Stevenson Primary and Disney Elementary
• Renovations and additions to Alvin and Manvel High Schools
• A safety and security package
• Land acquisition

Early voting begins Oct. 21 through Nov. 1, according to district documents.