Montezuma-Cortez school district officials on Tuesday discussed a tentative timeline to tear down the retired high school, just a week after voters approved a referendum allocating $1.8 million for its demolition.
Re-1 director of facilities and school safety Jamie Haukeness, speaking at the school board meeting on Tuesday, said bids for abatement and demolition would be put out next month.
Referendum 3A was approved in the Nov. 8 election 5,358 to 3,078, passing with 63.51 percent of the vote.
“I couldn’t be more thrilled,” he said of the vote.
Demolition design has been completed, he said. Abatement, the first phase of the project, includes treating and removing friable asbestos, which remains in some of the walls of the old building.
Jamie Haukeness said he hopes to begin the abatement process in January, but that the complex process could take four months. His best-case scenario is to finish abatement by February and start demolition immediately afterward. However, he said, abatement likely will delay the demolition until spring or early summer.
Jamie Haukeness also told board members he was meeting with Montezuma County officials this week to discuss a discounted rate for dropping off demolition debris at the county landfill. Re-1 officials also will ask the state to apply $418,000 from the Building Excellent Schools Today (BEST) grant program toward abatement and demolition.
Superintendent Lori Haukeness also said she was glad to move forward with the project.
“I’ve never been so excited to demolish a building in my life,” she said.
Other board businessLori Haukeness reported that she filed for a redesignation of the district’s accreditation level on Nov. 7. The Colorado Department of Education accredited the district at the “priority improvement” level for the sixth consecutive year, meaning that state intervention could be required.
A high number of students opted out of PARCC standardized testing at M-CHS and Cortez Middle School during the 2015-2016 school year, so the district has asked that those schools be redesignated with “insufficient data” ratings. The appeal also asks the state department to redesignate the district with the “improvement” rating. Lori Haukeness said she was confident that the district would be granted the appeal.
Jamie Haukeness also reported that there will be a parent reunification drill on Dec. 7 involving Kemper students in third, fourth and fifth grades. Students will be bused to the auxiliary gym at M-CHS, and parents will pick them up there.
Over Thanksgiving break, a water pressure reducing assembly will be installed at M-CHS, Jamie Haukeness said. The current 100 psi from the city’s water line is too strong and has damaged some gaskets at the building. Cost for the installation will be $9,878. Haukeness also said he will file a $4,360 capital reserve fund request to replace two Automatic External Defibrilators, one at M-CHS and one at CMS.
Also Tuesday, the board approved several supplemental budget amounts, including $9,500 for an advanced placement pilot program at M-CHS, $9,189 for a federal No Child Left Behind grant, and a $500 for math program stipend from Ohio State University.
After the meeting, the board entered a closed executive session to discuss “student matters.”
