Clover Park staff propose $500,000 facilities assessment and 8-classroom early learning expansion

Clover Park School District staff on Tuesday recommended the district commission a professional facility condition assessment and feasibility studies to identify deferred maintenance, life-safety needs and replacement options, and to advance design for an eight-classroom early learning addition at the former Southgate site.

The facility condition assessment estimate is $500,000, with a staff estimate that about $78,000 of that could come from state funds. District staff said the assessment would be conducted by licensed architects and engineers and returned to the board in January or February, and that staff would bring a formal recommendation to the board at the September meeting to authorize the work.

The work matters because the study will feed the district's long-term capital planning and any bond proposals, and because older buildings often trigger costly upgrades. District staff noted that repairing individual end-of-life systems can trigger Americans with Disabilities Act and energy-code upgrades that make renovation less feasible than replacement.

Rick (staff member) told the board that the assessment would collect condition data, life-expectancy estimates and a high-level cost estimate the district can use to quantify deferred maintenance and to feed the state's IKO system. He described the WACC-related requirement that measurements be conducted by licensed professionals (architects and structural, electrical and mechanical engineers) and said the study will identify life-safety issues, major maintenance needs, and areas needing deeper assessment for program spaces such as career and technical education, food service and athletics.

Staff also described ongoing predesign feasibility work. The district is doing an early feasibility study for Lockbourne Middle School to evaluate site constraints, and staff said Clover Park High School modernization and additions — a topic raised repeatedly by past facility advisory committees — will be updated and prioritized. Staff said the district is also reviewing options for consolidating some small, aging elementary schools into larger-capacity facilities but is not naming specific schools at this stage.

On early learning, Executive Director Jennifer Herbold and Rick presented details of a proposal to add an eight-classroom, approximately 11,000-square-foot addition at the old Southgate site. Staff estimated design and feasibility cost at $375,000 and said construction-cost planning currently centers around an $8,000,000 estimate to deliver eight new classrooms, ADA-compliant restrooms and site work including parking, drainage and a buffer from adjacent railroad tracks. Implementation times from design to occupancy were given as roughly 15 to 24 months depending on delivery model.

Staff said they had narrowed delivery options to a predesigned prefab approach and a traditional design-bid-build model; they said general contractor/construction manager and design-build models were less suitable for this project given the district's current specifications and desire for design control. The presentation noted the $375,000 figure aligns with state fee parameters for projects of this size but warned that tariffs and cost escalation could change the number.

Board members asked about funding risk. Executive Director Herbold answered questions about program funding, saying Head Start is a federally funded component at the early learning center and that ECAP (state-funded) and special-education preschool funding are also part of the mix. Board members and staff flagged uncertainty in state and federal funding streams and noted the district would likely look at bonds in a 2027'28 timeframe if the board elects to move forward with major construction, which would further define the financing plan.

Board members expressed concern about community reactions to consolidation and bonds, and asked staff to design an engagement process that includes listening sessions before any decisions are finalized. Staff said they plan public workshops and board planning workshops as part of the feasibility work.

Staff also described that prior emergency repairs can be costly: work at Idyllwild Elementary to replace failing underground sewer lines had required overtime, prevailing wages and premium payments because repairs were performed as emergencies in winter conditions.

Next steps listed by staff were: present a recommendation for the facility condition assessment at the September board meeting; continue predesign work at Lockbourne Middle School; update feasibility for Clover Park High School modernization; and bring the early learning feasibility and design recommendation (McGranahan PBK Architects) to the September board for consideration of the $375,000 design fee.

Board action recorded at the meeting was limited to routine adjournment; the proposed capital items were presented for future board approval.