School construction should be finished by June

School construction in the Cascade School District is progressing well and should be finished in the next couple months. That is, the construction on Alpine Lakes Elementary and the first phase of Cascade High School will be finished in June, according to School District Construction Liaison John Henri, who said the construction on Alpine Lakes is going extremely well.
“There’s actually one classroom we can look at to see what it will look like. We can bring teachers into that classroom so they can start planning,” Henri said, at the March 26 Cascade School Board meeting. “The first floor, they are putting flooring down. Final paint, handrails. During March and April, we’ll be doing finishes. In May, we’ll start doing punch lists. In June, we will go back and finalize and check the punch lists. We’re getting very close to the end.”
Superintendent Bill Motsenbocker asked Henri to explain a punch list.
“A contractor goes through and does their work, drywall, paint, finishes, mechanical, electrical, plumbing. When they say they’re done, then we bring the architect in and the consultants and we go through and check the work to make sure it’s up to the quality standards we expect,” Henri said. “Those items that don’t meet those standards will be put on a punch list. The contractor only wants to get one punch list, so sometimes they put together a completion list. It says these are the things I’m not done with, you can punch the rest.”
Henri said they are under budget, but that doesn’t mean they won’t run into something unforeseen.
“We will start earthwork here in another week or so. Most of that is flat work, concrete and paving,” Henri said. “Most of the excavating has already been done, so we’re in good shape. Schedule wise, we fully expect to have the project done in June. We’ll have probably incidental stuff that will go on in July.”
Furniture is already starting to be moved into the classrooms, he said. The big move involving furniture, teachers, boxes, teaching supplies is coming this summer, so Henri said they are trying to get a head start.
The plan is to start moving into Alpine Lakes on May 15.
“They will actually start receiving furniture on May 15. Before we can take possession of the rooms, they have to be punched and done. If we damage it, it is on us and not the contractor’s fault,” Henri said.
The contract for Alpine Lakes is up in June, while the high school first phase is up in July. Henri said he can think of nothing that would prevent the move from starting. Osborn Elementary Principal Kenny Renner-Singer said they are looking to move staff into the new building on Aug. 1, which would give them the month of July if there is more moving.
Renner-Singer has been to the school, Henri said, trying to figure out how kids will move from point A to point B. Board member Trey Ising expressed concerns about the traffic impact on Pine Street once Alpine Lakes opens.
“That is going to be a nightmare in the morning. It’s already pretty riddled. Now, you’re tripling the traffic flow. More kids will be walking through that area with high school drivers. People will have to plan extra time to get in and out of there,” Ising said.
The city has requested a traffic plan of where the buses are going, so the city can have the information when asked, Henri said. Essentially, the buses are on the same route they are running in the first phase.
The high school is coming along very well, Henri said.
“We’re putting more carpet and tile down, hand railing on the second floor and stairs. We’re getting final paint on the walls. The plan on the high school is they are going to be ready for us to move in with furniture in mid-July. They’re supposed to have phase one done in mid-to-late July,” Henri said.
The budget on the high school is tenuous right now, Henri said, because there are still some major items they have not started yet.
“So until we get that done, we have to keep those pots of money. We don’t want to spend, then find out we don’t have enough,” Henri said. “We’ll tear down the old school this summer, June 15. There is going to be some unforeseen conditions we don’t know about. The academic wing, commons area, stage area...that will all be torn down. The only thing remaining will be the locker room and the two gyms.”
Henri said they are planning to close the gyms this summer, because they will be demoing the building during that time. The plan is for the athletic area to be done by the first of the school year.
“One thing we are working on with our geotech is bank stabilization behind the gym. We have some pricing on that. We want to make sure we get what we need and install it this summer. The bank behind the gym, I wouldn’t say is unstable, but there is water coming down the hill with little boulders and rocks,” Henri said.
The project on Peshastin-Dryden Elementary School will not start until the kids are out on June 15. The first thing to be done will be asbestos abatement, Henri said. That will last through the end of June and into July. Henri said they will be gutting the school in July and August.
“The existing footprint pretty much stays the same, except we add about 8,000 square feet of kindergarten classroom and administration area. The entire parking lot gets done. That project was bid as an alternate. It came in under budget so we were pleased with that,” Henri said. “We believe we have sufficient contingency. We put more in this school than the others because there is so much we are gutting and rebuilding. That’s when you start finding unforeseen conditions.”
Ising asked how the construction would affect football in the fall, since the field is located in the same area.
“We haven’t sat down with the contractor to talk about the construction lay down, parking and all that. It is a very small site so parking will be very limited. We will fence part of the parking lot off and the entire school to the play area will be fenced off,” Henri said.
Ian Dunn can be reached at 548-5286 or editor@leavenworthecho.com.