BENTONVILLE -- Work could begin as soon as this week on the site that will be home to the School District's 11th elementary school and fifth middle school.
The School Board approved a maximum price of $2.25 million for the work necessary to prepare the site for construction during its Jan. 5 meeting.
Timeline
Here’s a timeline of key dates associated with construction of the Bentonville School District’s 11th elementary school and fifth middle school:
• Jan. 27: Groundbreaking ceremony
• Feb. 1: Begin site work
• March 3: Building drawings and specifications put out to bid (pending jurisdictional approvals)
• March 29: Receive bids on building packages
• April 4: Seek approval from School Board of guaranteed maximum price for the building
• April 15: Start construction
• July 15, 2017: Complete construction
Source: Nabholz Construction, Hight Jackson Associates, Bentonville School District
Four packages related to site work -- the major ones being earth work and fire line utilities -- were put out for bid, according to Jason Vines, a manager for Nabholz Construction. Fifteen proposals were received.
Nabholz, the project manager, won the bid on earth work at $1.6 million; in all, bids came in $470,000 under budget for site work, Vines said.
The overall cost of site work and construction is expected to be $29.3 million. An additional $7 million is budgeted for design, furnishings and academic material.
Nabholz held a construction meeting with city officials Jan. 12 and received authorization to proceed with erosion control, site grading and storm sewer improvements at the site. Some of that work may start this week if the weather cooperates, Vines said.
The district, meanwhile, has scheduled a groundbreaking at the site for 10 a.m. Jan. 27.
The elementary and middle schools will be connected and built simultaneously on 48 acres the district bought last year off Southwest Featherston Road in Bentonville. The property is east of the Riverwalk Estates and Quailridge subdivisions and just north of Southwest Regional Airport Boulevard.
Site preparation is expected to take nearly three months. That work includes stripping topsoil, preparing the area where concrete will be poured, filling in ponds and removing any trees that need to go, said Paul Wallace, the district's facilities director.
"There are very few trees on this site, which is fortunate," Wallace said.
Building construction will take another 15 months. Both schools are expected to open in August 2017.
The facility is expected to be 180,000 square feet. That's 6,000 square feet smaller than what originally had been planned. Architects and district officials were able to find ways to get more efficient with the space, Wallace said.
The district is financing the project by setting aside a certain amount of money each year toward second-lien debt payments. No tax increase was necessary to pay for the schools.
The schools haven't been named. Superintendent Michael Poore said he'd like to get the schools' principals in place before the naming process.
"I think having the principals involved is a good thing," Poore said. "And I'm hoping to start that process in February."
NW News on 01/19/2016