School district renovations on track

Although barely any of the Gunnison Watershed School District's (GWSD) $95 million renovation budget has been spent, planners are refining the design for the historic project. In the coming weeks, an executive committee will match the “scope” of the proposed renovations to the existing budget.

The school district’s bond money, supported by a property tax increase in 2023, will fund district-wide renovation projects at each of the Gunnison Valley’s schools. This includes updating aging infrastructure, expanding student programs and improving security systems. The district’s goal is to finish construction by the end of 2026. Chris Guarino and John Usery, from Artaic Group, GWSD’s owner’s representative, gave the school board an update on the design timeline and potential grant funding at a regular meeting on Jan. 15.

For months, community members and district faculty have shaped the project through design advisory groups. At the same time, contractors have completed energy modeling, demographic studies and land surveying. That feedback and data contributes to the project’s schematic design phase, when the renovation plans get more detailed and trade-offs are identified. 

“We encourage everyone to dream big during schematic design, and we capture everything, all the needs and wants and desires,” Guarino said. 

The schematic designs came in about 10-15% over budget, but this is an expected part of the process, Guarino said. Now, the executive committee — composed of Superintendent Leslie Nichols, board president Tyler Martineau, the district’s Business Manager Tia Mills and Transportation Manager Paul Morgan —  will whittle the plans down to fit the district’s budget. 

The team hopes that the project will ultimately cost less than what’s been budgeted, Guarino said. So far, Artaic has spent nearly $1.3 million. Most of that has been on design work for the Crested Butte Community School, which will undergo some of the district’s most expansive renovations. The team expects to have a final price for the entire project by the end of the year.

Project planners will continue to meet with district staff and community members to focus on more specific areas of the school, like individual classrooms, and what Gunnison Community School’s (GCS) expanded cafeteria or the Lake School’s playground will look like.

Even with significant taxpayer support, the team plans to submit two grants to the Colorado Department of Education’s BEST program, which funds the construction of new schools and renovation of existing schools. Submitting grants throughout the process is a part of the Artaic’s strategy to “stretch bond dollars further,” Guarino told the Times. 

“ When we're planning construction projects, it's in our best interest to try to get as many resources as possible, to try to make the dollars go as far as we can,” he said.

The team is applying for the most “urgent” renovations. This includes HVAC mechanical systems at GCS and Crested Butte Community School. A large portion of the HVAC equipment — air handling units and boilers — date back to the late 90s. Planners estimate the total cost of the HVAC overhaul will be about $11 million.

The security grant, which would cover renovations district-wide, includes the secure entryway vestibule, interior push lock buttons and security cameras. This cost is expected to be around $4 million. Artaic is hoping the grants would cover about a third of the overall cost. 

Current designs also plan for bullet-proof glazing at school entrances and moving administrative offices to the front of the building. These details provide general security, but are also motivated by the trend of continued school shootings in the last five years. 

Each district is given a unique match amount for the BEST grants, calculated off its overall budget, student population and enrollment. Gunnison’s is 61% this year, but Guarino suggested the district opt into a 65% match to strengthen the application. Voters approving the bond last fall should also give Gunnison a leg up, he said. 

The district would be pitted against schools around the state, vying for the same limited pot of money. If the district receives the money, it will have three years to complete the outlined projects. The district will know if it received the funds by July of this year. However, the team is not factoring grants into their budget as they work to complete the design.

“It would be irresponsible for us to count on it. So we have to take this as a bonus if it comes,” Guarino said. 

Community meetings on Jan. 31 in Gunnison, and Feb. 1 in Crested Butte will offer a closer look at the current schematic design. At a school board meeting on Feb. 12, Artaic will report on the updates scope of the project, the budget and alternative design options.

(Abby Harrison can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or abby@gunnisontimes.com.)