District 11 outlines $26 million Jenkins Middle School rebuild plan, aims for partial occupancy in August 2025

Colorado Springs School District 11 on April 23 received a construction update and concept design for the Jenkins Middle School repairs and partial rebuild, including schedule, stabilization work and a preliminary budget estimate. District staff and the districts design-construction partners told the board they are moving to fast-track work to achieve partial occupancy for the rebuilt space in August 2025 and full occupancy in August 2026.

What the plan covers - Immediate stabilization and demolition: Contractors reported demolition permits are in hand and that crews have begun demolition in the media center and other interior areas. The team said the building shows localized settlement and that the project will remove slabs in affected areas and replace them on micropiles (nitropiles) to isolate new structural slabs from unstable soils. - Phasing to protect school operations: The plan calls for building a new two-story academic addition on the south side of the campus while preserving other teaching areas for occupied use. The districts plan uses a temporary hard fire barrier and strict segregation of active construction zones so occupied parts of the school can be used safely. Modular classrooms will be placed in the bus loop as a temporary measure for the 2025-26 school year if needed. - Reimagined spaces: The recommendation includes reconfiguring the former seventh/eighth-grade wing with a glass-connected two-story addition, a reimagined media center with a learning stair and maker/academic labs, and an outdoor amphitheater/learning plaza. Designers emphasized west-facing learning spaces and multiuse spaces for performance and collaboration. - Code and life-safety coordination: Staff said they are coordinating closely with the Colorado Springs Fire Department and Pikes Peak Regional Building Department to meet current building and fire codes. A key open question for the team is whether the building will require full sprinklering as part of the renovation or whether a phased/supplemental approach will be acceptable for partial occupancy; staff said their budget assumes worst-case sprinkler requirements until officials confirm otherwise.

Budget and schedule District staff presented a preliminary budget package in the mid-$20 million range (the team referenced a $26 million planning number) and said they will seek board authorization next week to execute contract modifications and move from preconstruction to construction. The contractors and district project managers said they are aligned on a schedule that sequences micropile installation, slab remediation, fire-barrier work, media-center build-back and then full addition construction.

Board direction and public outreach The board was asked to approve a contract modification next week at a special meeting to allow the team to proceed; administrators said they will include public comment opportunities in that special meeting schedule. Staff also said they will continue weekly updates to the board and additional community briefings this spring and summer to answer detailed operational questions (student assignments, modular locations, transportation impacts).

Quotes "We have demolition permit. We, yesterday, picked up our repair permit... we are off and running," a contractor representative said while showing photos of early demolition. "Our goal is partial occupancy in August as we briefed a couple of times, and we are projecting full occupancy the following August of 2026," a district project lead told the board.

Next steps - District staff said they will present a contract modification and maximum-price authorization at a special meeting next week and urged the board to act quickly to keep the fast-track schedule intact. - Staff will continue life-safety coordination with CSFD and the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department and will aim to provide a vendorspriced sprinkler and mechanical scope while they await final code decisions.

Bottom line District staff and construction partners proposed a fast-tracked remediation and redesign of Jenkins Middle School, with early stabilization and partial occupancy a central objective. The board is expected to consider a contract modification next week to allow construction to proceed under the proposed schedule and budget assumptions.