In a nutshell
Trustees unanimously approved a construction budget of nearly $19.9 million and an overall budget of $32 million for Creekside Junior High School's two-story fifth grade expansion.
The addition is expected to be finished for the 2026-27 school year.
TISD Superintendent Martha Salazar-Zamora said adding a fifth grade section to Creekside Park Junior High is expected to save the district about $14.5 million compared to building a stand-alone intermediate school.
“Ultimately, we were able to come to a determination that we could add a fifth grade wing, making us somewhat nontraditional,” Salazar-Zamora said at the meeting. “There aren’t many exemplars in the [grades] 5-8 world, but I can tell you we plan to be one.”
Meeting highlights
At the Dec. 10 meeting, trustees also unanimously approved updates for 2021 bond projects, including:
- FMG Construction LLC as the builder of sidewalks at the Early Excellence Academy and the Staff Development Center for $120,809.88, including a $50,000 contingency budget for Phase 1
- Trustees selected Texas Arcadis Inc. as the architect for projects at West High School and the Tomball Innovation Center.
Stay tuned
The board will discuss at a future meeting how the school district plans to maintain both an intermediate and a junior high experience under one roof at Creekside Park Junior High School, according to Salazar-Zamora.