School bond passing with overwhelming support

Last week, South Bend voters affirmed our need and opportunity to build a new elementary school.  The vote resulted in a 74.9% YES decision and will be certified on May 4.  Though we felt good about the prospects of passing the school bond, the overwhelming voter support shown last week was nothing short of amazing.  

As of last Tuesday, South Bend was the only school district in the state to pass their school bond on the April ballot.  Others are counting ballots still today to try and reach the difficult 60% 'yes' margin.  

I am thankful to live and work in a community that so strongly supports its schools.  As I told our staff last week, I believe the overwhelming community support is a testament to the great job our teachers and school staff do with kids.  As superintendent, I am extremely proud of our school district and our community's support.

A big thank you is well deserved for our community, as well as to the following folks who tirelessly worked on our facility committee to bring this project to our voters.  These people include:  Mike Morris, Gary Wilson, Kresta Byington, Amy Nelson, Tom Sanchez, Cheryl Green, Ryan McMurry, Andy Seaman, Mindi Passolt, and Jewel Crow.  Mike Morris deserves additional recognition for his efforts as bond campaign chair.  His help and assistance was extremely valuable, and we are very thankful for all his work.  Finally, our school board of directors deserve credit and recognition for their vision and allowing us to explore innovative funding with the state.  Thanks to Senator Dean Takko, Representative Brian Blake, and Representative Jim Walsh for their continued efforts and persistence in helping us secure funding assistance.

Now the real work begins.

Several folks are asking about next steps.  Below is a summary of where we go from here:

1.  We will hire architects, engineers, and project managers within the next several weeks.  In late March we advertised an RFQ in the Seattle Journal of Commerce to solicit applications for these services.  We have been talking with several firms which will lead to our selections very soon.

2.  As soon as we have architects and a project management firm, we will begin design.  The design process will involve staff and community members, and will take 7-8 months.  There are many facets to the project that need to happen before we select a general contractor.

3.  Our goal is to be ready to go out to bid (for general contractor) by January, 2019.  

4.  We hope to break ground early next Spring, 2019.  Part of the design process will be determining the most cost effective time to start building.  

5.  The project is estimated to take 12-15 months.  We will stay in Chauncey Davis during construction.  Ideally, the new building will be complete toward the end of the 19-20 school year.  We would then move into the new building and demolish the old that summer, which will also be the time we complete the new bus loop/parking area.

The above steps will also involve coordination with the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) as we move through the review/approval processes.  As with most major construction projects, timelines can vary...  We will do our very best to ensure the project progresses in a defined and organized manner, and that the end product is something that will make our community proud.

Again, many thanks to our South Bend community for your trust and support.  It is a privilege to live and work in South Bend.