Bayfield School District has completed a nearly six month process to identify its most pressing infrastructure needs and craft a plan to prioritize and address them over the course of the next decade, and on December 10 the final draft of the plan was presented to the school board by Daniel Gardiner from Chamberlin Architects.
The master facility planning process began in July when district officials began gathering data and preparing for a series of community-centered workshops with consultants from Chamberlin and Cuningham, the other firm that provided guidance through the process.
“There were three components of the Master Plan,” Gardiner explained, noting that in addition to the input gathered at the workshops, the consultants also assessed the district’s facilities to determine both their physical condition and educational adequacy.
The assessments identified approximately $5 million in immediate (and possibly overdue) maintenance needs in the district. It also provided information that led workshop participants to agree that a major renovation of Bayfield Middle School should be the focus if the district can secure funding by obtaining a BEST grant. The school board would also have to elect to move forward with a proposal to submit a bond request to voters next fall to address the situation at BMS.
“Through the (workshop) process we honed in on the middle school being a particular area of need,” Gardiner stated.
That revelation came as no surprise, as the district had reported on the concerns over the middle school’s condition through all three sessions of the workshops, which were held in August, September and October.
The assessments at BMS revealed that the structure of the building was sound and newer parts of the facility are in good condition. It was determined early in the process that the building is worth saving, but there are many areas of concern. Most notable among them are a failing canopy in the breezeway that connects a gap between learning areas on the northwest side of the building, a fire alarm system that needs constant maintenance, poor drainage and grading around the building that is undermining the foundation, and an HVAC system that underperforms throughout the building.
The consultants also pointed out that accessibility is non-compliant at BMS, security at all entries is sub-par, most of the building's systems (ventilation, boiler plant, electrical) are past their functional lifespans and the intercom system does not work. A third of the building’s roof leaks and needs to be replaced, sidewalks are deteriorating, exterior stucco is cracking and letting in air and water and the learning spaces in the building are outdated and ill-suited for modern instruction. It was also reported that acoustics and other factors make both the gym and courtyard at the middle school difficult to utilize effectively.
The school is also dealing with capacity issues, as participants in the workshop indicated that Bayfield Middle School was “bursting at the seams,” and the district was forced to cram classrooms into spaces not designed to be used for that purpose. The administration is also isolated in the building, and staff members reported that they felt like they were “trapped” because of narrow, congested hallways and a poor layout that makes circulation throughout the building challenging. The cafeteria is too small to comfortably feed all the students in a timely manner, and PE and athletic programming are also limited by the small gymnasium. There is a lack of performance and gathering space in the building as well.
The proposed renovation includes a new main entry at the southeast corner of the building, where the administration offices will be relocated. It also ties the building together through the construction of an 8,000 square foot addition that is dominated by a new cafeteria/gathering space, and approximately 5,000 square feet of other additions that are designed to increase capacity by creating new learning spaces. The initial draft also includes 30,000 square feet of interior building renovations that include the gymnasium and media center, and significant construction on the south side of the building to expand parking and improve the pick-up and drop-off loops.
When initially presented to the group in the final master planning workshop, the desired improvements were estimated to cost about $30 million, but consultants were able to move that number closer to $21 million after making some adjustments.
“We knocked down some of the square footages and knocked down some of the levels of improvement,” Gardiner explained when he presented diagrams of the proposed renovations and cost estimates to the board.
When combined with the $5 million in priority maintenance items identified in the district-wide facility assessment, Bayfield School District’s immediate infrastructure needs total a little more than $26 million. Gardiner also described for the board the avenue through which the funds may be obtained to take on the district’s most pressing facility needs.
“If the board so chooses, the plan is to go forward with a BEST grant submission,” Gardiner said.
BEST (Building Excellent Schools Today) Grants can be used for the construction of new schools, as well as general construction and renovation of existing school facility systems and structures, according to the Colorado Department of Education website. They are awarded through a competitive process, and Chamberlain and Cuningham will continue to provide assistance to the school district in submitting the grant application in February, which they anticipate will be for approximately $7 to $8 million.
BEST grants can only be used to pay a portion of total project costs, so the school board will also have to approve a request for voters to approve a bond issue in the fall to come up with the approximately $17 million that would represent the local share.
Fortunately, the challenges identified at Bayfield Middle School make the proposed renovation a viable candidate for BEST grant dollars.
“That (project is) going to look best for the BEST grant,” Gardiner explained. “You’re most likely to get a BEST grant if your submission is focused on safety, security, accessibility, things that are viewed by the BEST grant board as high priorities.”
The limited budget and qualifying criteria for a BEST grant meant that a number of other infrastructure improvement projects identified during the workshops will have to wait until additional funding can be identified, or until the district has more bonding capacity in 2032.
The most notable of these projects is a proposed 6,000 square foot Career and Technical Education (CTE) addition at Bayfield High School that consultants were able to design for an eventual price tag of approximately $4.6 million. Also placed on the waiting list is a more complex renovation of the athletic and fitness area at Bayfield Middle School that was estimated at $7.4 million, the potential construction of a $3.8 million auxiliary gym at the school, and upgrades to the football field and track that would cost in the neighborhood of $2.5 million.
Gardiner informed the board that the workshop team was guided in setting the priorities they did by the fact that these lower-priority items would not be viewed as favorably on a BEST grant application.
“They tend to fund safety and security measures number one on their list, and they tend to not get to number two on the list,” he said, noting that the amount of funds available is limited and that the process of obtaining a grant is very competitive.
Regardless of whether or not the district is successful in securing a BEST grant and the board elects to put a bond before voters to move forward with the renovation of Bayfield Middle School, Gardiner said he felt the objectives of the master facility planning process had been met.
“We started the process trying to understand what our goals were,” he told the board, noting that the district was primarily interested in knowing the state of its current facilities and developing a maintenance schedule and replacement schedule for big ticket items. He believes that the time school officials and community members spent in collaboration during the series of workshops laid out a plan for how district facilities can and should be used for the next ten years.
“We got great feedback from the group and great participation at these workshops,” he said. “Community pride is a big thing in Bayfield, and that was reflected in the vision statement (that was prepared) as well.”