Coupeville hopes high school project bids come in low

Published 9:00 pm Monday, January 30, 2006

COUPEVILLE – The Coupeville School District should know by the end of February about bids for a new high school.

At a time when school construction costs are on the rise nationally, district officials are hoping for the best.

McGranahan Architects This artists rendering shows the exterior of the new Coupeville High School.

“We will know in a month when the rubber meets the road,” said Gary Goltz, the district’s project manager.

The school district will open the sealed bids on Feb. 28.

Voters approved a $22.8 million bond measure in 2004. The $21 million school is expected to open by fall of 2007.

Contractors will build a new high school main building and modernize the school’s main gym. The estimated cost is $14.5 million for the second of three construction phases.

The new 75,000-square-foot high school building will be bigger than the existing one.

The high school now has 365 students, and the new building will accommodate 400 with additional capacity for another 50 students and the ability to expand.

Initial work has been completed, including building pads, an entry access road, and storm drainage detention and treatment.

A final stage will include construction of an auxiliary gym and demolition of the old school.

The district is hoping to receive state matching money for the auxiliary gym from the state Board of Education in the summer.

The district had to scale back the project and drop the auxiliary gym from the local funding because of increased construction costs brought about by several factors, including Hurricane Katrina reconstruction efforts.

The existing Coupeville High School was built in 1940 when enrollment was about one-third of what it is today. It shares space with the middle school, built in the early 1990s.

Goltz has been involved in school construction projects for 16 years. “I have never had as much community scrutiny on a project,” he said, adding that’s good because it shows the school is important to the community.

Reporter Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446 or stevick@heraldnet.com.