Highland school board, staff discuss addition plan

Bid letting for the approximate $3.5 million addition to the Highland Middle and Senior High School building is early February with a possible contract award in early March. Completion would be in the fall.
The timetable, as well as details about improvements that would add a new wrestling room, library, administrative offices and classrooms, was discussed at a special Highland Board meeting Monday, November 3.
The meeting deal only with the plan with input given by board members and Highland faculty and staff.
Besides the wrestling room, which received a $200,000 grant from the Washington County Riverboat Foundation and $50,000 from the fund raising efforts of the district’s athletic boosters, the plan calls classrooms and offices, with additional funds from the one cent statewide sales tax. The tax, enacted this year, replaced the previous local option sales tax for school infrastructure.
Monday, suggestions and concerns included handicapped accessibility, greatly needed storage space, improved rest rooms and concession stand (near the wrestling facility), more classrooms and improvements to the building’s heating and cooling systems.
This summer, Highland hired an Iowa Construction Advocate Team (ICAT) provided through the Iowa Association of School Boards (ISB), to help with the project concept at a cost of $9,750 with expenses not to exceed $3,500.
The architects are OPN of Cedar Rapids, and an OPN representative said Monday the entire project should be done by January, 2010.
Much of the construction work will come after classes end next spring. However, work will continue during the fall, but should not greatly interfere with classes, noted Superintendent Chris Armstrong.