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District: Bond-funded summer work largely complete; Central High design advances to community open house
Summary
District staff told the board that summer bond projects across multiple schools are mostly finished, Phase 1 work came in under budget, Central High schematic design is complete with a Sept. 10 community open house and construction planned for 2026, and Grand Junction High improvements and new tennis courts will be available as students return.
District operations and the bond program team told the Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 board that this summer’s bond-funded work completed major safety and classroom improvements at multiple schools and left only a handful of long‑lead finish items.
“I'm Micah Adams, program owner's rep for the 2024 bond projects,” Micah Adams said in the update, which listed asbestos abatement, new fire‑suppression piping, drinking fountains, makerspace renovations and safety bollards among the summer work across five schools. Adams said most remaining items—permanent wood doors, acoustical panels and some playground equipment—are expected to be installed after school hours or in the coming weeks.
The team said Phase 1’s construction budget was presented at about $28,800,000 with approximately $19.3 million in hard construction costs and about $4 million in soft costs committed; presenters reported the phase came in under the originally forecasted phase budget by roughly $5 million, while cautioning pay applications for July were still being processed.
Schematic design for Central High School is complete and consultants described phasing and site constraints to keep students in class during construction. Presenters said helical piers were not viable and the project will use drilled piers/caissons; the design‑team target for design documents was revised from mid‑October to mid‑November when speakers reviewed schedules. A public open house to display renderings and answer questions is scheduled for Sept. 10; construction is planned to begin in 2026.
Board members asked about student circulation during construction; program staff said FCI plans to provide a fenced, roofed breezeway to protect passage between buildings and that modular administration space and temporary student modulars have been identified to reduce classroom disruption.
On Grand Junction High School, presenters reported the schedule is largely complete, with corridor tile, tennis courts and field infrastructure finished or nearing final clean‑up ahead of the school year. The board chair noted the Elliott family had donated a legacy stone and had raised about $1,012,000 toward the high school tennis program.
The district also highlighted local contracting: presenters said primary contractors and many subcontractors were local businesses and that the work supported local jobs, a point several board members praised as consistent with procurement goals.
What’s next: staff said design advisory and user‑group meetings will continue for Central, Phase 2 design work for the next set of schools will proceed, and staff will return to the board with updates on Fruita Monument High and other projects in September.
