Project Updates Since November 9th

The following information is made available courtesy of the Independence Community School District and prepared by Superintendent Jean Peterson and Board Members Brian Eddy and Eric Smith.

Terracon Consulting Drilling for Soil Samples

• November 11-15, 2011
  Terracon completed their drilling of the soil samples on the 92 acre site. The Geo-Technical Engineering Report should be available by the middle of December 2011. Early indications show no major surprises with the condition of the soil.
  
• November 15, 2011
  HSR solicited and received bids for the Soil Conductivity Tests. The District selected A-One GeoThermal out of Earlham, Iowa to perform this service. They were the low bid at $10,900. HSR had estimated this service to cost approximately $14,000 - 15,000, so we were very pleased to see their bid come in under budget.
  
• November 8 – 22, 2011
  HSR Associates continues to update and tweak the floor plans based on feedback received from the District Reps, the Project Oversight Committee, staff and coaches. HSR expected to have updated floor plans available for the District Reps by Monday, November 28, 2011. After the District Reps and Project Oversight Committee give the update floor plans a final review, the plans will be shared with staff and coaches.
  
• November 21, 2011
  Brad Simonson and Bob Freerks of HSR attended the Board of Education meeting to update the Board and public on the progress of the floor plan and the Geo-Technical work performed by Terracon. The Board also discussed the need for a meeting to plan the layout of the 92 acre site plan. A meeting has been scheduled for November 30th. Representatives from various community groups (City, County, Farm to School, Environmental, Energy, Trails Association, MHI, District Grounds & Maintenance, among others) are in the process of being invited to join Brad Simonson and the civil engineers from HSR to discuss the 92 site plan. HSR also reported that the project remains on schedule for bidding in early 2012.
  
• November 22, 2011
  HSR Associates held their initial meeting with the acoustic engineering consultant. The goal is to ensure that key spaces, such as the auditorium and gymnasium, provide our visitors with the experience they expect.
  
• November 30, 2011
  HSR Associates will be attending a special board meeting scheduled for November 30, 2011 at 6 PM at West Elementary Commons to share the proposed floor plans to the Board for approval. The community is encouraged to attend to see the results of the all the great feedback and suggestions from staff that we incorporated into the plans.

Special Meeting to Present Jr./Sr. High School Floor Plans

The Independence Community School District Board of Education will host a special meeting on Wednesday, November 30th at the West Elementary. The meeting will begin at 6:00pm with a representative from HSR Associates (architects working on the project) presenting the proposed final floor plans that the architects, staff, administration and Oversight Committee have been working on for the past few months.

“We encourage all district residents to attend this informational meeting. It is important for us to maintain a clear line of communication with the public about this very important and exciting project”, said Superintendent Jean Peterson.

The project’s Oversight Committee has been working diligently to research and incorporate the feedback received from district communities during the campaign to pass the bond referendum. 

“We have received several positive suggestions regarding the site’s development and the construction of the new facility. After the bond referendum’s passage, we continued to meet with individuals and groups to collect various ideas and feel that the architects have put together a solid floor plan to meet our district’s needs well into the future”, stated Brian Eddy, Board President.

For additional project information, please visit www.buildforthefuture.org or check out previous blog posts.

Project Updates Since October 26th

The following information is made available courtesy of the Independence Community School District and prepared by Superintendent Jean Peterson and Board Members Brian Eddy and Eric Smith.

Revised Floor Plans as of 11/09/11

• November 2, 2011
  Brad Simonson, Gene Pankonien, and Bob Freerks from HSR travelled to Independence again for their second meeting with the Junior – Senior High School certified staff and coaches. Superintendent Peterson, Principal Sornson and Board Reps Eddy and Smith participated in the half-day of meetings, which commenced at 1:30 PM and finished at 5:30 PM. Board Reps John Christensen and Rusty Donnelly also rotated with Smith and Eddy for a couple of sessions to participate in the process. The updated design plans were shared and an additional round of feedback was received. HSR intends to have updated floor plans ready within the next 7-10 days, which should put this phase of the design process near completion.
  
  After the updated floor plans are reviewed by Oversight Committee and District Reps to ensure HSR addressed all the agreed upon changes, the floor plans will be shared with the staff and community. The goal is to have the floor plans finalized and presented for Board approval in late November 2011. Staff are also being given an opportunity to present their desired layout of their rooms (teacher desk, student desks, etc.). HSR’s interior designer will discuss details of the gym, auditorium, media center and other aspects of the project in the future as well. The primary objective at this point is to finalize the general floor plan. The interior details will be then be addressed.
  
  
• November 4, 2011
  The Oversight Committee met to review the requested changes and to ensure the projected scope of the project stays within budget. We then provided HSR with direction on what suggested changes and renovations could be made to the floor plans cognizant of the project budget.
  
  
• November 8, 2011
  The School District received five sealed bids for the issuance of the $8,115,000 of School Infrastructure Sales, Services and Use Tax Revenue Bonds (SILO Bonds). The Board accepted the low bid from Northland Securities, which came in at a true interest rate of 2.89%. PiperJaffray, the investment banking firm hired by the District to assist with the issuance of the bonds, reported that this is the lowest interest rate ever obtained by a School District in Iowa for SILO Bonds. This is great news for our District.
  
• November 9, 2011
  Terracon is expected to be on the 92 acres yet this week, weather permitting, to drill soil samples. This Geo-Technical Engineering Report should be available by the end of November 2011.