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WYNOT — About 30 Wynot area residents attended a special meeting Wednesday night to learn more about a possible school renovation project.
School patrons were presented with three options for updating the school gymnasium and industrial arts facilities. School officials hope residents will eventually settle on one of the plans so a special bond election can be held to fund the project.
The proposed projects range in cost from $7.9 million to $11.4 million. Additional public meetings are also being planned to continue discussion on the issue, according to Supt. Paul Hans.
The school has been working with an Omaha architectural firm for the past two years to explore possible renovation and expansion options.
“What I’m going to present tonight is not a solution — we have options,' Bob Soukup of Carlson West Povondra Architects said.
Representatives from Otte Construction and Northland Securities, which would handle bonding and financing for the project, also attended the meeting to explain their possible roles.
During a public meeting in February, Carlson West Povondra Architects presented a plan to build a 16,864-square-foot addition on the west side of the school. Under that proposal, the current gym would be expanded to allow for additional bleachers. A new addition on the west side would also provide additional locker rooms and a mezzanine fitness area, which could free up space for a classroom.
That proposal also called for eliminating the current stage and building a new stage inside a practice gym west of the existing gymnasium. A new industrial technology area would also be constructed northwest of the current facility.
Soukup said the project would allow the school to “add more square footage, so you have more room for the growing needs of teaching today’s kids going through school, more about the ag economies, welding, woods, all of those kind of trades.”
That option carries an estimated cost of $7.9 million. Officials estimated it would add approximately 24.4 cents to the local tax levy. However, a 9-cent building improvement bond approved in 2009 will be paid off in December, meaning taxpayers would see a net increase of about 15.4 cents.
Community members raised questions about the original proposal during the February meeting, prompting architects to revisit the plans and develop additional options.
Another alternative would include construction of a 22,618-square-foot addition at a price tag of $11.4 million, and would feature a new gym on the east side of the school, along with a new industrial technology room and locker rooms west of the existing gym.
“This design was a reaction to the feedback we got in February,” Soukup said.
School officials also met informally with village officials to ensure the project would fit within community guidelines.
“The school already did some leg work, working with the village to just say, ‘Is this something that the village would consider,’ giving a waiver to be able to build past that property line,” Soukup said. “We would basically build to where you would still have the ability to have a sidewalk and still have a full open street with this plan.”
Soukup said the proposal would increase gym capacity to about 890 people and would integrate more smoothly with the existing building layout.
“The thing that is better about a plan like this is the fact that now when you have your concessions, you have your main entryway, you have your gathering space, I can connect these two spaces very well,” he said. “You have all your services, your restrooms, everything is connected.”
The updated proposal would also keep the current stage in place while adding more storage space in the new gym area.
“So now we’re not building new square footage for the stage,” Soukup said.
He added the revised plan would provide a larger industrial arts area and could also improve drainage concerns on the east side of the building.
“When we build a structure this tall on the other side, you’re going to introduce maybe some new snow drip onto the old elementary roof, which could mean additional renovation costs to make sure that we’re not compromising that structure in the winter months,” he said.
A third option would be similar to the updated east-and-west expansion plan, but slightly smaller at 20,426 square feet.
Keith Moje of Otte Construction explained how cost projections for the projects were developed.
Moje said the company uses an Excel-based estimating system to project costs based on work completed on similar buildings. He said projections include demolition and dirt work, concrete, metal construction, handrails, wood framing, insulation, drywall, cabinetry, flooring, specialty items, plumbing, HVAC, electrical work and fire sprinkler systems.
Moje said the newer options add an additional 3,000 to 4,000 square feet to the project, causing costs to increase significantly.
He added the estimates also include a contingency fund.
“We’re just trying to give you a worst-case scenario, or the best-case scenario,” Moje said. “We’re trying to include all the costs and everything in there.”
The next public meeting is planned for May 20, at 6 p.m., at the school.
