Regardless of which option Burrell School Board chooses when it comes to renovating Bon Air Elementary School, it has the support of Lower Burrell’s planning commission.
The commission recommended approval of plans that add cafeteria and kitchen space to Bon Air, or additional cafeteria space and six additional classrooms at the school.
“It’s been well-discussed among the school board, at great length,” said commission Chairman Ray Rieser. “They’re the ones who have the dog in the fight. Everything has been looked over.
“Our purpose is to make sure all the zoning laws have been applied, and they have.”
The proposals come after the school board, in October, voted to close Stewart Elementary School due to declining enrollment and the need for costly infrastructure upgrades. Renovating Stewart would have cost $17 million, on top of the other $24 million worth of projects the district is considering at its other schools, said Superintendent Shannon Wagner.
Fourth grade students will go to Bon Air next year and fifth grade students will go to Charles A. Huston Middle School.
Added cafeteria and kitchen space is necessary at Bon Air to accommodate the additional grade level there, Wagner said. Plans presented by architect Andreas Dometakis, of Pittsburgh-based HHSDR Inc., showed the additional cafeteria and kitchen space would be about 8,400 square feet. That space would be built onto the existing cafeteria behind the school.
Some of the existing cafeteria space could be used as a multipurpose area for the school and community, Dometakis said.
“By having the larger cafeteria, we’re able to have two (grade level) lunches at one time,” Wagner said.
Renderings also show a fenced-in, outdoor courtyard area near the addition, and a rebuilt road path behind the school for kitchen deliveries.
The cafeteria and kitchen addition, boiler rebuild, and a heating and cooling project at Bon Air are estimated to cost about $10 million, Wagner said. Building six additional classrooms, in addition to the other projects, would bring estimated costs up to about $14 million. Those six additional classrooms would only be necessary if the district decided to move fifth grade classes to Bon Air after next school year.
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No additions are necessary at the middle school with the additional grade level this year.
“This has been so thoroughly reviewed by the engineer and school board,” Rieser said. “We want to let them get construction started as quickly as possible.”
The school board this week gave administrators the go-ahead to advertise for bids for the Bon Air projects, Wagner said. It will do so once it gets city council’s approval. Council will vote during its meeting May 12. Mayor Chris Fabry declined to comment on the proposal, saying the plans haven’t been formally presented to city council.
If approved by the city, the district plans to advertise for bids in May and award contracts in June, ultimately determining whether it wants to include the classroom additions or not, Wagner said. Construction would start in July. Wagner hopes the project would be complete by the 2026-27 school year.
As the school board considers proposals at Bon Air, it also has to come to grips with $10 million worth of boiler replacements and a heating and cooling project at Burrell High School.
Wagner said the school board will consider advertising the high school’s HVAC project in June, and possibly meet in July to award a contract.
School directors last fall took out a $10 million bond to pay for construction projects in the district. They intend to take out another $10 million bond to cover the rest of the projects.
With recent ebbs and flows to the bond market, Wagner said the district will take the advice of its bond counsel, PNC Capital Markets, as to when it’s best to take out the second bond. Taking two $10 million bonds is cheaper for the district than one $20 million bond, Wagner said.
“The district works with our underwriter, PNC Capital Markets, for information and guidance relating to the bond market and potential impacts on our district and potential bond issues,” said Burrell Business Manager Jennifer Callahan.