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Board approves Miller Middle School design fee, reviews 4-year phased renovation plan
Summary
Board members saw a 100th-anniversary video, approved Amendment 3 to finalize architectural fees for the Miller Middle School renovation and heard a detailed four-year phasing plan that aims to keep the building operational while adding classrooms, a commons, student success center and an auxiliary gym/storm shelter.
The Marshalltown Community School District board on Dec. 15 approved an amendment finalizing the architectural fee for the Miller Middle School renovation and received a multi-phase schedule designed to keep the school open during construction.
At a special presentation, district communications staff shared a 100-year commemorative video marking Miller's history. Envision Architecture principal Tim Turnis then reviewed the design-development renderings and explained the project concept: “Restore, reimagine, and unify,” preserving historic fabric while adding modern learning spaces.
Turnis described major elements of the plan, including a restored auditorium with upgraded lighting and audiovisual systems, a new commons and district kitchen, a student success and wellness center, and a north-side auxiliary gym that doubles as a storm shelter. He said the design reuses and highlights historic materials where feasible and incorporates wayfinding, daylighting and collaborative "house"-style classroom clusters.
Amendment 3, which the board approved 4-0, finalizes the architect's fee after design development. Turnis said the change reflects a construction-cost-based percentage that was refined as project estimates were completed.
Boyd Jones and the district also presented the construction phasing and logistics that will guide the project from early 2026 through the end of 2029. The team described a sequence of summer-critical work to minimize classroom disruption: early site infrastructure and the auxiliary gym/"ox gym" work intended to come online first, followed by commons and classroom additions. The firm emphasized traffic-management plans, temporary pathways, contractor background checks, neighbor communications about construction noise and staging, and incremental furniture deliveries to fit phased openings.
Local officials and project staff highlighted constraints that shaped phasing: the need to add classroom capacity as existing rooms are taken offline for renovation, drainage mitigation at the site, and maintaining safe egress and code-compliant exit distances while construction proceeds. Turnis and Boyd Jones repeated that the district will keep the campus operational throughout the project and that some summer windows are critical for specific trades.
The board approved Amendment 3 and the design-fee finalization by unanimous voice vote. Trustees asked about noise mitigation and moving options for teachers and students; project staff said new classrooms and phased openings are intended to reduce repeated relocations.
The district will return to the board in January with bidding documents and further details for upcoming procurement.
