Facility planning committee to discuss middle school and more at Monday meeting
On Monday, the Greenville ISD Board of Trustees and a facility planning committee made up of community members will meet for one of their discussions about a potential future bond effort.
In addition to bond planning, the committee, the board and district staff are also working on developing a long-term facility master plan.
Their meetings will take place on different campuses in the district, as they discuss the needs and considerations for each facility.
Monday's meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at Greenville Middle School at 3611 Texas St., as replacing the aging 75-year-old-campus was an area of focus in the district's three previous bond attempts in May 2022, November 2022 and November 2023.
While GISD has added additional portable buildings to the middle school to increase its capacity, reasons why the district is eager to replace it entirely include the building's age-related deterioration and it being out of compliance with current Americans with Disabilities Act requirements, Texas Education Agency standards and updated building codes.
In the first two bond attempts, the proposed location for a new middle school was nestled against existing neighborhoods to the south of Ridgecrest Road and to the west of Sayle Street, which proved to be a sticking point for voters who lived in and around those neighborhoods.
Then, in the most recent bond proposal, the pending location of the new middle school was on land the district owns that is near the Lamar Elementary School campus at 6321 Jack Finney Blvd.
So far, in early discussions about a future bond effort, WRA Architects has encouraged the district to use a 'construction manager at risk' delivery method for the design and planning phases of the potential project, which means that a construction manager would be hired to work alongside the architect to help with cost estimation, giving expertise on constructability and (if necessary) advise on how to approach phasing of the project.
GISD Superintendent Joe Lopez has also advised that in his experience, school districts that involve a construction manager in the early stages of planning have been more successful in getting bonds passed.
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