It may look like ‘war zone,’ but Albion schools will be ready for students next month
Photo by Tom Rivers: The front entrance of the Ronald L. Sodoma Elementary School is off limits on Monday after new concrete sidewalks were poured. The sidewalks have a heating system that will melt ice during the winter.
ALBION – The first day of school is less than a month away and the campus will be ready for students, the Board of Education was told on Monday.
The campus has been under construction this summer, with contractors working on about $10 million worth of projects.
“I know it’s disturbing in the beginning of August when everything looks like a war zone,” said Kirk Narburgh, managing partner and CEO of King + King Architects in Syracuse.
The contractors will be “substantially complete” in time for opening day of school on Sept. 7, Narburgh said.
The projects touch all three school buildings, the bus garage and athletic facilities.
Narburgh said one big piece of the project will have to wait until likely next summer and that includes replacing many windows. There has been a long waiting list for new windows nationwide, he said.
Contractors will have new windows done for the middle school auditorium. Those windows are being assembled on site.
An asbestos abatement contractor is finishing up its work, which will allow other contractors to pick up the pace in getting the campus ready for the first day of school, Narburgh said.
The football field is getting new drainage and sod and should be ready for play this season. Narburgh said Albion had the work scheduled before many other districts pursued similar projects.
“We’re lucky we didn’t do more because others are backed up,” he said about the field work.
The baseball field will get new fencing this week, with sod to follow.
The Board of Education approved the $10 million in construction bids in February.
The work includes:
• District-wide: fire alarm updates and exterior door exit lighting with a generator.
• Elementary School: (1956 section) new branch piping with heat, (1956 section) asbestos removal in the crawl space, (1956 section) asbestos removal in ceilings, (1956 section) teaching walls update, relocation of flag pole, main entrance surfacing and radiant heat, pencil post covers, solar shading system on the new wing (south), and additional site lighting (north).
• Middle School: upper loading zone sidewalk, site lighting, new windows with the addition done in 2000, chimney work, and HVAC replacement for the pool.
• High School: Library renovation and central boiler replacement.
• Bus Garage: site lighting, oil separator replacement and floor drains wash bay.
• Grounds: football drainage, track surfacing, baseball drainage, dugout foundations, stadium lighting refresh, stadium emergency lights, and underground storage tank removal.
The projects are part of a $14,370,548 capital project that is 91 percent covered by state funds. District residents approved the capital project on May 19, 2015 by a vote of 313-55.
Contractors last summer worked on roofs that were part of the first phase of the capital project. This year the majority of the overall project will take place.
The district still has about $1 million remaining in the capital project for milling and paving. That is planned for 2018. The district didn’t want to do that while heavy equipment from construction companies was on campus this year.
