Reconfigured schools nearly ready to shine for new year

By Susan Steinmueller / Hometownlife.com

Finishing touches are being put on newly reconfigured Farmington School District schools.

With the new school year starting in less than two weeks, district facilities architect Ron Aten paused at the newly re-named Warner Upper Elementary School Tuesday and said that things are going well.

“We went to work as soon as school was out,” he said. “We bid the work previous to that. Things are right on schedule.”

That includes the installation of the school's new sign last week.

The district closed four elementary schools and reconfigured its other elementary and middle schools last year as a result of budget cuts.

Elementary schools now serve K-4 instead of K-5.

The middle schools were split into two middle schools — East and Dunckel, serving grades 5-6; and two upper elementaries, Power and Warner, serving grades 7-8.

Changes to the schools included reconfiguring 10 classrooms at Warner and Power, remodeling two classrooms at Wood Creek Elementary, and adding lockers at Warner, Power, East and Dunckel.

“The tech ed rooms were no longer needed so we completely gutted them,” said Aten, as he walked through Warner Tuesday to show some of the changes.

“There was an auxiliary gym that became two classrooms,” he said.

Playgrounds are still under construction.

Rich Griffin, field superintendent for contractor McCarthy & Smith of Farmington Hills, said all the changes were made with recycling in mind to save money and keep materials from landfills.

“The district made an effort to re-utilize as much material as they could,” he said. “So there's a little more of a green aspect to the construction.”

Cheryl Cannon, district executive director of operations, told the school board at its regular meeting Tuesday that the conversions are “98 percent completed.”

“It's all very good news,” she said, considering that it was accomplished in “nine and a half weeks.”

Much work involved transferring items from closed facilities, she said.

We moved over 8,000 boxes and are still moving boxes.”

“Kudos to Cheryl and her entire team,” said Supt. Sue Zurvalec. “To think of where we were last spring, and what they are have accomplished in a few short months is astounding, really.”

THE COSTS

Cannon said the one time cost to reconfigure is budgeted at $3.9 million, and is well within budget.

Among other items in that cost are: Buying buses, the cost of moves, the cost to reconfigure a 10 Mile Road building for staff moving from the closed Maxfield Training Center, and 13 additional mobile laptop cart labs.

It all adds up to savings, however.

“The annual yearly savings is estimated at a net of $2,756,700 to come from closing the four elementary schools and MTC, including staff, utilities and other operational costs of buildings,” she said.

“You can see then that the one-time costs are recovered in less than 1.5 years.”

She said the board and community will be provided with an update on the actual costs in October or November, once projects are complete.