Post by title1parent on Mar 27, 2008 5:46:13 GMT -5
Metea startup in time crunch
March 27, 2008
By Tim Waldorf twaldorf@scn1.com
Work will have to begin soon if the Indian Prairie School District intends to open Metea Valley High School by August 2009.
"I think we need to be on land, moving dirt, by absolutely the middle of April," Superintendent Stephen Daeschner said.
"We'd like to be on it sooner... We've got contracts in preparation for that, but if we can't do that, then we really begin to run into a little trouble."
With that deadline looming, the district is still trying to secure the necessary permission to release the results of a two-phase environmental study of a portion of property where it wants to build the school.
The district has had the results of those tests for two weeks, but, because of a confidentiality agreement with the various parties involved, it has been unable to release them. And they were not ready for release in time for this week's School Board meeting.
Until a year ago, Midwest Generation operated a peaker power plant on 17 of the 88 acres at Eola and Molitor roads, the site for the new school. The district intends to purchase the property for an estimated $16.5 million, contingent upon the successful cleanup of any portion of the site.
While the release of the environmental information was delayed, the board went ahead in approving more expenditures for the school's construction, adding steel to a list of bids it already approved. Earlier, the board OK'd similar bids for mass grading, structural excavation and concrete foundation, and precast concrete wall panels, roof panels, beams and columns.
Board President Mark Metzger explained the decision to approve these bids before the district publishes the environmental study results or finalizes the purchase of the property.
"What it really boils down to is there's lot of lead time that contractors need... They've got to get insurance certificates. They've got to staff up. They've got to reserve equipment. ... This allows them to start working on all of those things," he said.
March 27, 2008
By Tim Waldorf twaldorf@scn1.com
Work will have to begin soon if the Indian Prairie School District intends to open Metea Valley High School by August 2009.
"I think we need to be on land, moving dirt, by absolutely the middle of April," Superintendent Stephen Daeschner said.
"We'd like to be on it sooner... We've got contracts in preparation for that, but if we can't do that, then we really begin to run into a little trouble."
With that deadline looming, the district is still trying to secure the necessary permission to release the results of a two-phase environmental study of a portion of property where it wants to build the school.
The district has had the results of those tests for two weeks, but, because of a confidentiality agreement with the various parties involved, it has been unable to release them. And they were not ready for release in time for this week's School Board meeting.
Until a year ago, Midwest Generation operated a peaker power plant on 17 of the 88 acres at Eola and Molitor roads, the site for the new school. The district intends to purchase the property for an estimated $16.5 million, contingent upon the successful cleanup of any portion of the site.
While the release of the environmental information was delayed, the board went ahead in approving more expenditures for the school's construction, adding steel to a list of bids it already approved. Earlier, the board OK'd similar bids for mass grading, structural excavation and concrete foundation, and precast concrete wall panels, roof panels, beams and columns.
Board President Mark Metzger explained the decision to approve these bids before the district publishes the environmental study results or finalizes the purchase of the property.
"What it really boils down to is there's lot of lead time that contractors need... They've got to get insurance certificates. They've got to staff up. They've got to reserve equipment. ... This allows them to start working on all of those things," he said.