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Jan. 27, 2016 - Bond-related construction is in full-swing. In fact, by next summer, 44 schools will have construction projects underway or already finished. The bond is also funding several new districtwide facilities, along with two new elementary schools.

Below are details about the projects currently underway.

Workman Junior High
Construction is underway at Workman Junior High to build a 16-classroom addition. The school is also receiving a new entrance, renovated administration space and life cycle upgrades. The additional classrooms are being added because of an expanded student enrollment. Hutcheson Junior High closed at the end of last school year, and its students moved to Workman. Until the addition can be completed, portable classrooms have been brought into accommodate the larger student enrollment.

Building permits were received Oct. 28, 2015, and work began shortly after. Large amounts of rain this fall and winter have slowed things down a bit, but progress is being made. The drilling of piers for the classroom addition began in early November, but encountered an extremely hard rock boulder layer. A more powerful rig was brought in and now, as of Jan. 19, all 84 piers for the classroom addition are complete, and drilling is underway on the other side of the building for the admin addition and new entrance. Work is also being done to install utilities, and pouring grade beams began last week.

In addition to the work currently underway, Workman’s cafeteria was expanded over the summer and the kitchen upgraded with new equipment. Just outside the cafeteria, on either side of the library, the lockers were removed and the area is being converted into additional classrooms.

All construction at Workman is being managed by Pogue Construction, following plans designed by Brown Reynolds Watford Architects. The project is scheduled to be complete in August 2016.

[See photos of the and the .

Ousley Junior High
All building-related construction at Ousley Junior High is now complete, with most of it done over the summer. All that remains is work on Ousley’s outdoor athletic field, which will be done in the spring of 2016. The football field will be repositioned and a four-lane track added, and the field will receive sports lighting.

The rest of the work at Ousley, now complete, included a number of projects related to life cycle upgrades and replacements, along with improvements designed to accommodate growth. The student and faculty population has grown considerably this school year since it consolidated with Ferguson Junior High. The AISD raced to get most of the projects done over the summer so the campus would be ready when school started in August.

The most high priority jobs completed over the summer were changes associated with Ousley’s growth. While the building itself is large enough, some interior changes were required. The administration offices were renovated, with walls rearranged to accommodate more faculty, including an additional assistant principal and school counselor. Another task was the division of one very large classroom into three, which required adding walls and new doorways.

Other jobs included the replacement of water fountains and light fixtures and the improvement of ADA accessibility – including adding grab bars in the restrooms. Twenty HVAC rooftop units were replaced, along with all related controls. The roof was also replaced. Among other improvements, the technology connectivity was upgraded and ID card access controls added. The stage curtains were replaced with eight new curtains, including curtains at the front of the stage, along the sides and in the middle.

Construction at Ousley is being managed by Pogue Construction, following plans designed by HarrisonKornberg Architects. Full project completion is scheduled for September 2016.

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Ferguson Education Center
The bond-related work at Ferguson is complete. Formerly Ferguson Junior High, the name on the building has now been changed to Ferguson Education Center. The scope of construction projects at Ferguson was not as extensive as Ousley’s, but the building did receive a number of life cycle upgrades and replacements. Ferguson Junior High vacated the building to consolidate with Ousley, but the campus is now home to two of the AISD’s alternative schools, Newcomer Center and Venture High School.

Among the projects completed over the summer was the replacement of 20 rooftop HVAC units, along with all related controls. The water fountains were replaced, along with the stage curtain and light fixtures. The weight room was converted into classroom space and ADA accessibility was improved, which included adding grab bars in the restrooms and installing a new ADA ramp and sidewalk. Technology connectivity was also upgraded, with additional data drops installed in the labs, and ID card access controls were added. The campus also received landscaping improvements and new signage.

Construction is being managed by Pogue Construction, following plans designed by HarrisonKornberg Architects. Substantial completion has been achieved and the project will be completely closed out early this year.

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Sandy McNutt Elementary
The site of the future Sandy McNutt Elementary School, located next to Workman Junior High, is now full of activity. All the rain this fall initially caused some delays, and a hard rock boulder layer under the ground made drilling piers more difficult than originally expected. But now, with more powerful rigs on site, the piers are being successfully drilled and poured. As of Jan. 8, 250 piers had been drilled, with about 100 remaining. In addition, utilities are being installed, digging for grade beams has begun and preparations for part of the slab concrete is underway. The installation of a storm sewer box culvert was just completed this week.

The construction of McNutt Elementary is being managed by Balfour Beatty Construction, following plans designed by Corgan. McNutt is scheduled to open next August for the start of the 2016-2017 school year.

[Click for more details about McNutt. See .]

Eddy and Debbie Peach Elementary
Construction of Peach Elementary, in north Arlington on Baird Farm Road, has also been affected by all the rain this fall. In addition, some underground concrete, discovered while digging for utilities, had to be removed. But now the new elementary school is well underway. The ongoing work includes drilling piers, pouring grade beams, pouring the fire lane and installing utilities. The first part of the parking lot was also recently poured.

The construction of Peach Elementary is being managed by Balfour Beatty Construction, following plans designed by Perkins+Will. Peach is scheduled to open next August for the start of the 2016-2017 school year.

[Click for more details about Peach. See .]

Multi-purpose Activity Centers
Construction of the Multi-purpose Activity Centers (MACs) – one at each AISD high school – has begun. The building permits were obtained for all six sites on Nov. 2, and work started shortly after. Though all six are being built simultaneously, each is moving at a slightly different pace. Rain has slowed the progress, but all have done groundwork that includes tasks like removing goal posts, stripping topsoil, soil conditioning and site grading. Depending on the site, they are currently moisture conditioning, drilling piers, forming and pouring grade beams and/or installing utilities. At the Arlington High School site, which is the farthest along of the six, they have begun erecting structural steel for the metal building.

Substantial completion of the 77,704-square-foot facilities is planned for the summer of 2016, which means the buildings will be ready for use next school year. Construction is being managed by Balfour Beatty Construction, following plans designed by Huckabee.

[Learn more about the and see .]

Career and Technical Center
The future districtwide Career and Technical Center will be built on the site of HutchesonJunior High. But first, Hutcheson is being torn down to make way for the new facility. The vertical part of the Hutcheson structure is now gone, and they have moved on to tearing out the foundation and removing all the rubble. The demolition should wrap up around the end of February.

Bidding for the construction of the new center closed Thursday, Dec. 17, 2015. Once the Hutcheson building is completely removed, new construction will begin. Construction of the Career and Technical Center will be managed by Balfour Beatty Construction, following plans designed by VLK Architects. The building is scheduled to be complete in the summer of 2017.

See . Learn more about the future .]

Corey Academy of Fine Arts and Dual Language
Renovations at Corey Academy of Fine Arts and Dual Language are just getting started. Corey Academy opened this school year and is located in the Corey Elementary building. The school building is receiving extensive renovations to enhance the fine arts and dual language programming the new academy offers. The renovations will provide state-of-the-art fine arts spaces like strings rooms, piano practice rooms, drama space and dance studios. In addition, adjustments will be made to ensure there are enough classrooms so that each class – or cohort – can spend half the day in an English classroom and half the day in a Spanish classroom.

The work is being done in three phases, with each phase in a different part of the building. The phasing allows the construction to take place with minimal interruption to the school. Construction workers are only allowed in blocked-off construction areas and are required to use a separate entrance and exit. In addition, all workers must undergo a background check before being allowed to work at Corey or any AISD school.

Much of the work right now is demolition – clearing out spaces to make way for the special requirements of the fine arts and dual language programming. The workers took out three dumpsters last Monday and still had about 100 to go. There is also electrical work and plumbing underway, including the plumbing for a new restroom in the music area.

Construction at Corey is being managed by Pogue Construction, following plans designed by Stantec Architects. The work is scheduled to be complete by the start of the 2016-2017 school year.

[Click here for more information about Corey Academy of Fine Arts and Dual Language. See.]

In Design:
AISD construction staff are working closely with architects and construction managers, along with school principals, preparing for Phase Two bond projects. [Click .] Boles Junior High, a Phase One project, is also in the design stage. Construction at Boles is expected to begin in late spring.